Stubborn Mind
by Vixin2
Summary: Elaine Hawthorne, archaeologist and curator, was always a bit stubborn when it came to her work. As such, she didn't run away when a supposed specter started to appear in Misthallery during the Golden Garden expedition. This however would lead to meeting Jean Descole. The world's most arrogant man in her opinion. Eventual Descole/OC. Rated T just in case.
1. Introduction

Elaine Hawthorne was a proud woman. She felt that she had accomplished quite a bit up to now since her family moved to England from Burgundy, France. She had gone through college, studied archaeology and earned her degree and eventually worked her way up to being one of the curators of the London Museum. Of course she did archaeological work as well, it being her main interest, and signed up for excavations when possible.

So when news of the possibly location of the Golden Garden arose, she decided she just had to sign up. It may end up with her having to use her holiday time, but she felt that it would be worth it. Of course, others had applied as well which meant that there would have to be a limited number.

But it helps when you're one of the few who can actually understand the glyphs of the Azrans'. The ones who created the Golden Garden to begin with.

So, that was how Elaine ended up in Misthallery. Is was fine for some time.

Then the Spectre showed up.

The first few attacks, they were all okay. But eventually, it just got too much for some of them and they left. Except Elaine. Maybe it was her only lack of belief in such things, or perhaps it was her own stubborn nature that refused to let her cave in. So she decided, she would continue on her own. She didn't think it was too impossible. Tricky and at the very least difficult? Perhaps. But it wasn't impossible. Yes, it was possible for her to get her work done without any trouble, whatsoever!

Then, she met Jean Descole.

* * *

**I figured since I found no Descole/OC's here except for one which doesn't seem to be continuing any time soon, I'd make an attempt at it myself. Probably going to fail at it, but meh. Also, there MAY or MAY NOT be some spoilers for the second trilogy. I think that much is pretty obvious. And it also goes for the last game of said trilogy. So don't complain to me if I spoiled you. You were warned. End of story.**


	2. First Meeting

"Stop there! Who are you?!" Elaine's French accent never left her. Or the rest of her family for that matter. But right now, she just sounded furious as she shun a flashlight at the trespasser. She had just been in her tent, getting ready to go to sleep when she was sure she heard footsteps. She had kept quiet at first, not sure if it was just in her head or not but hearing the steps continue made Elaine regret turning her lamp off. But her annoyance at anyone trespassing on the excavation site got the better of her as she instantly grabbed a flashlight and went outside, shining her light towards the person standing near one of the caverns the excavation group had made. Appearing to be analysing it.

The person appeared a bit off guard with her appearance. Probably didn't expect any of the archaeologists to remain, Elaine thought to herself.

The intruder himself, when he turned around, was a bit odd to the Frenchwoman. He wore a white mask and dog eared hat for one, along with a grey feathered boa and cloak over a dark suit. She could still see his mouth, and from what she could tell he seemed apathetic then and there. Until he gave either a smirk or smile. Elaine couldn't really tell.

"Ah, I wasn't aware that there was still anyone present here." Elaine already had her guard up as the intruder began walking up to her. His voice sounded a bit aristocratic and confident. But it was the cause of the confidence that had Elaine worried.

"Not all of us believe in ghost stories, Monsieur," Elaine replied coolly. Still keeping her flashlight on the man. She had a moment where she felt glad to have learned kickboxing once the man was barely several steps away from her. She wanted to check around her on the off chance there may be others present but it somehow felt like a bad idea to take her eyes of this man for even a second. It felt like a gamble, but she thought she made the right decision.

"So you're not afraid of this Spectre that everyone is afraid of?"

"There's nothing to be afraid of." Elaine huffed. The masked man however seemed to be mildly amused however as he made his retort.

"Oh? Then tell me? Why do you have a flashlight then? Surely if there's nothing to be afraid of, you should be okay in the dark on your own."

"Because I'm not stupid and don't wish to end up dead."

"If that's what you think will be the result of meeting me, then you wound me." He put a hand over his heart, his mockery clear while Elaine bit her tongue for a moment and breathed deeply through her nose. She then repeated her original question.

"Who are you? And what are you doing 'ere?"

"I don't think I need to tell you my name or reasons. However, I may part with my name if I receive your own in return." Elaine narrowed her eyes. She'd rather not give her name, but it seemed there was no choice if there was to be any progress.

"Elaine Hawthorne." Elaine said shortly. "Now yours'."

"So demanding for a young lady, but you can refer to me as Descole." He seemed to think Elaine should have been happy enough with that name. But instead it only raised some suspicion.

"No first name?"

"What makes you so sure it was my surname I gave?" Descole questioned.

"No loving parent would be cruel to give that as a first name." Elaine answered back. "Not unless they thought it was 'umourous." 'Descole' as he called himself didn't seem to think it was amusing and his mouth seemed to be in a distinct frown. But Elaine went on before he could have a chance to reply.

"And I gave you my full name. Don't I deserve to receive your own in return?" Elaine mocked the words he said not too long ago. It wasn't too long before he was smiling though.

"You just asked for a name to call me by in the beginning. You shouldn't be greedy now."

"I didn't realise your name was the most valuable thing in existence." Elaine muttered. But it seemed that was all she was going to get out of him as far as his name was concerned, and just went onto the next question.

"You still didn't say why you're here." He didn't answer straight away, but when he did he answered,

"Well you see, I am a scientist of sorts with a deep interest in archaeology, and I heard that the Golden Garden could possibly be here so I felt that I had to come myself." Elaine thought this story through in her head. It wasn't unbelievable really. There had been some mild interest among the people in town and one or two had come up here. Plus there had been an article printed in some of the papers so it shouldn't have been surprising for this Descole man to have heard of it. But there was a small problem with that that stood out like a sore thumb.

"Then, why are you here during the night?"

"I arrived here late and when I heard that the archaeologists were gone, I thought it couldn't hurt to have a look here myself." Elaine's blue eyes showed some of the doubt she had about the story. It seemed slightly believable but it sounded mostly nonsense to her.

"Even though there's supposedly a spectre 'ere?"

"From what there is to observe, it hasn't come here." Descole noted calmly. Elaine felt there was something else but couldn't quite place it.

"That doesn't mean you should be 'ere, Monsieur."

"Have you found anything yet?" Descole changed the subject, much to Elaine's chagrin.

"I don't see 'ow any of that is your business."

"After coming here, I think I'm entitled to seeing something of some sort of value."

"Then you'll be disappointed to learn that there has been nothing found yet relating to the Golden Garden." Elaine huffed, and stood straighter, trying to look taller. However, Descole was still taller than her. He didn't tower over her, but he was still taller.

"No?"

"Non. Except for a vase, rien!" Seeing him frown gave Elaine some hope that he would leave. But it was dashed when he said,

"I still want to look at it." Elaine pursed her lips as she tried to think of some way out of this, but it seemed he would just look even if she said no again. But maybe if he saw the vase, he'd go and never come back. Mumbling to herself in her mother tongue, Elaine stepped outside her tent.

"Suivez-moi." Elaine grumbled as she made her way towards the tent where she had left the fragile vase on the folding table, with only a brush and notepad to keep it company there. The light brown haired woman lit up a lamp before walking over to the vase as Descole followed.

"It was found in one of the caves after a small flood." Elaine began as she carefully held the artefact up in her hands, holding it up for the masked man to see. Though it was also on the off chance he may try to look with his hands instead of his eyes. "Not very surprising but it seems to be definitely to be of Azran origin.

"And you can verify that?"

"It's these glyphs around the rim of the picture going around it." Elaine explained as she pointed to the glyphs. The picture itself, while faded and a bit chipped, had enough remaining to show what looked like a little girl standing by a sea turtle that was stuck in the sand. As the picture went around the vase, the images changed along with the glyphs above it.

"It tells a story of a little girl finding a sea turtle stranded on a beach. She can't push the turtle out and she can't get 'elp from the villagers because then the turtle will be eaten. So she gets jellyfish from the water and feeds them to 'im until he is strong enough to return to sea. The night after that, an abandoned ship crashes onto the beach, with food for the villagers to eat."

Elaine had only looked up at Descole once she had finished explaining the story, and saw that he had what seemed to be a mixture of curiousity and surprise on his face.

"You can… Can you read the Azran glyphs?" Descole questioned. He sounded genuinely interested, and almost sounded as if he was demanding her to respond. "It's… quite a difficult language to grasp."

"True," Elaine agreed, "It took me nearly six years to fully understand it, but it was worth it. I'm not sure 'ow likely I would be 'ere if I didn't understand the glyphs. 'Onestly though, I always found it easier for me to understand then Greek or Latin."

"I see." Descole murmured, though mostly to himself. If Elaine could have seen his face, she would have seen how calculating it looked as he thought over what he said. But he then looked up at Elaine with a faint smile.

"I must admit that if I thought there to be anyone here, I never expected them to be competent enough at their job. You however seem to currently go against that theory."

"What do you mean by that?" Elaine questioned. She was beginning to wonder if she let something slip that she would end up regretting later. But Descole just chuckled as he turned around to leave.

"Nothing for you to fret over, my dear. Just expect me to keep you some company from time to time for conversation purposes."

"'Ey, attendez!" Elaine carefully put the vase back down before stepping outside again. But her surprise guest was already gone. Elaine could only scowl in annoyance as she looked around a bit more.

She never agreed to any meeting.


	3. A Little Tea

Elaine was never certain that Descole would actually come back. At first, she tried to convince herself that it had been some sort of dream, or that lack of sleep had caused a brief moment of hallucination. But it seemed too eerie to have been that. So for a short time, Elaine had kept her guard up but as the days went on it slowly ebbed way.

She decided that Descole wasn't coming back and at most was just trying some sort of scare tactic. And Elaine being Elaine, she wasn't one who would let herself get scared easy. Her papa had always told her to stand up for herself and that was what she would do if she had to.

But with the lack of appearances, it just seemed like he wouldn't appear. Just to be sure, Elaine tried staying up as late as she could and getting up just as early. Though they both seemed to counteract one another. But Elaine continued on with her work. Trying to find something that would prove this effort was not in vain or if there wasn't a Golden Garden then at least there could be something that was just as valuable.

"Another busy day?" Elaine had just left one of the caves, with dirt on her sore hands and caked under her nails as she carried a shovel over her shoulder. So seeing Descole calmly sitting at one of the folding tables with his hands together and leg crossed over the other. How long exactly he was there for, Elaine didn't care or even wanted to know now that she thought of it. But that didn't stop her shocked appearance.

"What the… What are you doing 'ere?!"

"I did say I would come and visit, didn't I?" Descole asked, sounding fairly casual about it as he smiled. He then stood up and walked over to Elaine and looked at her. Elaine thought he was looking for something before he stated quite bluntly,

"You got some dirt on your face." Elaine narrowed her eyes a bit and walked past him.

"I've been working. What do you expect?" she retorted as dropped the shovel near one of the tents. It wasn't exactly the right tool to use during a dig, but when you're trying to dig through a cavern you don't have much of a choice and just have to hope you don't break anything.

Descole wasn't lying when he pointed out the dirt on Elaine's face. In fact, it was all around it, with some even clinging to the short sleeved dark brown jacket she was wearing along with her trousers. Thankfully none of it touched her short, pale blue scarf. It was a nice scarf and her favourite colour and accessory.

At least the dirt on her face could be cleaned off now. The rest would have to wait.

"So what exactly are you here for?" Elaine mumbled as she took her choppy cut brown hair out of its pony tail and let it free around her shoulders.

"Is it truly harmful to just have a chat?" Descole asked, tilting his head to the side as Elaine made her way back to the table.

"Considering you're a masked stranger who could be a murderer for all I know, possibly."

"But we're not strangers, are we. We have met before after all."

"Only once. I doubt we could even be considered acquaintances." Retorted Elaine

"Then we are acquaintances." Elaine stared at him, wondering if he was purposely trying to make her angry or upset for some sort of game of his. But she kept her cool, and calmly asked,

"Then take off your mask."

"That isn't going to happen." Descole stated immediately. "If I wanted my face known would I be wearing it in the first place?" Begrudgingly, Elaine had to agree.

"… I suppose not."

"Exactly."

There was silence then, and Elaine began to feel uncomfortable. While she wasn't completely devoid of social contact, going into the town now and then to get some food and necessities or to use a phone to call her colleagues to update them on progress (when there was any), it had still been a while since there was anyone else at the excavation site to talk to who seemed to have interest in the work. So to try and find something to do and avoid having to awkwardly start a conversation, she went to get the teapot heated to make some tea.

"I'll have mine with just a little milk." Descole told her. Elaine raised an eyebrow towards him but didn't say anything. Being taught to stand up for herself as well as manners were a bit conflicted here but she decided she may as well give him some tea.

"I don't 'ave any milk." Elaine told him. "I don't usually have any in mine so I don't buy it often." Whatever Descole was feeling from this, the Frenchwoman wasn't sure. But the masked man did give a tiny sigh.

"Then make sure to have some next time then."

"Maybe if you want it so bad, you can bring it yourself."

"Not a very polite thing to say." Descole commented in a dry tone, with Elaine giving a small huff in return.

"Neither is assuming I'm making tea for you and saying to get milk when you may or may not come again." Elaine wasn't too sure what she had expected after that. But she didn't expect to hear Descole chuckle.

"Very quick to think of something witty, aren't you?" he mused. Elaine felt her lips curl into a small smile as she took two cups out of a box.

"So I've been told often." Elaine replied. "Ma famille say that combined with my apparent stubbornness, I'll end up dead."

"I can see what they mean, considering current events here and your refusal to leave."

"And is that a bad thing to you?" Descole was thinking over his answer, and for a moment he almost seemed hesitant to Elaine.

"I'll admit that finding you was… unexpected, to put it lightly," Descole began, "But I don't think I can say it's anything negative. For the moment at least."

"What? Afraid I'll turn on you or something?" Descole gave Elaine a slightly sardonic smirk before answering,

"That's the least of my worries, I assure you."

When the tea was ready, she poured them each a cup and sat down across from Descole, carefully keeping an eye on him. On the off chance he may try something.

"So how has the dig been going?" Descole asked after taking his first sip.

"Nothing too fascinating." Elaine replied. "I figured I'd try digging through one of the few caverns that hasn't been flooded yet. Not too much progress in digging it out, and I'm not too comfortable using dynamite." Truthfully, Elaine had never wanted to bring dynamite to begin with. Unfortunately, it did make creating caves to dig through a lot easier.

"Unfortunate," commented Descole in a dry tone. "But, these things do take time. I suppose. But I suppose as long as this 'Specter' doesn't come here then that should be good. Yes?"

"I suppose so. Not sure what will 'appen if it does though."

"I'm sure it won't."

"'Ow are you so sure?" Descole supped his tea, not looking too bothered.

"It seems to go for more populated areas. You're here alone so I think as long as you stay here and continue your work, there should be no need to fear a thing." Elaine wasn't so why, but that just seemed to stick out to her. The words themselves made sense but it was just... She wasn't sure what she could say really.

"Ms. Hawthorne?" Elaine's shoulders gave a little jump. Descole seemed a little irritated, his mouth in a small scowl. "I was asking if you had any contact with any of your colleagues lately."

"Pardon," Elaine mumbled back. "I just... 'Ad something on my mind." Elaine cleared her throat an decided on a question to ask.

"So where exactly are you staying?" Elaine asked.

"I don't think you really need to know."

"Well, is there anything else that you're doing 'ere that you 'aven't said yet?"

"Personal matters." Descole said simply. "That's all you need to be aware of." Elaine only inwardly sighed as added more tea to her cup. She still wasn't entirely sure whether it would be worth keeping her guard up with Descole. Most people probably would have tried to dance around the question, but Descole just stepped right over it and refused to give an actual answer.

All she could do now really was continue this little chat and try to not give away too much.

From there on, she would have to work with what she was given.

* * *

**Okay, so I'm glad to see there's been a couple views here. That makes me happy :) Also, if it's okay, I'd like some reviews too. I'm not going to hold the story hostage or anything if I don't. I just like to know what people think. I'm guessing it is at the very least, readable since there are two followers at the the time of writing this. Either way, thanks.**


	4. Meeting the Professor

Elaine had to admit to herself that the next few weeks were rather good if she did say so herself. While she did still keep some sort of guard up, she was actually becoming quite fond of Descole's visits. He was good for conversation and while he was a bit… frustrating at times, he still gave her company and seemed very interested in her work. True, there was still that Spectre business to carrying on, but it had yet to come anywhere near the dig site so Elaine was going to accept that blessing. She did feel sorry for the people in town who had lost their homes of course, but they seemed to be getting some sort of assistance from friends and family so that eased some of the guilt she felt.

But when she was leaving the market after buying some food, she heard one or two people mention something about a person having arrived in town. Possibly to solve the mystery. Of course, Elaine was happy to hear this and was glad to hear that something was finally being done. But it wasn't just this that caught her attention. One person mentioned the name Layton and Elaine felt some excitement. She had heard of the archaeology professor from Gressenheller University and had read an archaeological article he had published about a year ago, and had enjoyed it greatly. It might have just been a person who coincidently had the last name Layton, but Elaine wasn't going to let that get to her.

After the other archaeologists left, it seemed that the joy Elaine had of being on the excavation had dwindled greatly. But the fact she was able to continue on by herself (for now at least), with some company from Descole and news that Professor Layton was possibly in town made her feel as happy as the day she first stepped into Misthallery.

"Doesn't it ever get 'ot under for you? Under all those clothes?" Descole was back at the site and Elaine had already poured their tea out for them. She had found it strange that Descole would dress the way he did. It surely couldn't have been comfortable under that cloak and boa in this weather. True, England didn't have the best weather, but it was fairly warm and just around the beginning of summer. Descole just scoffed as he accepted his cup.

"I am quite fine, Ms. Hawthorne. Thank you for the concern, but it's pointless in this case."

"I'd probably drop dead if I had to wear all that now." Elaine said before mussing, "I wouldn't really think you were a scientist in all that. More like some sort of actor." Descole's chuckle was light, and sounded as if there was a hidden joke somewhere.

"While I'm not an actor by trade, I do have some acting skills. Amazing skills I must admit."

"Oh?" Elaine raised an eyebrow. It just seemed to Elaine that he was trying to pull a very bad joke. "Can I see then?"

"Perhaps another time."

'Yes, of course.' Elaine thought to herself. Say you have acting skills but don't even try to prove it. She then went to ask the question that has been on her mind.

"I've 'eard that a Monsieur 'Layton' was in town. I was just wondering if you would know if this was Professeur Layton? From Gressenheller Université?" Descole didn't respond immediately at first. It was hard to tell what exactly he was thinking since he never seemed to ever remove the mask. It made Elaine wonder if they actually knew each other.

"I... I believe it is Professor Layton." Descole responded.

"Do you know 'im?" The masked man looked up at Elaine sharply and she quickly added, "It's just that you paused before answering so it just made me wonder..."

"I do know him if you must know. But I prefer not to talk about it at all." Elaine raised an eyebrow but other then that, she said nothing else. It was clear this man kept certain things close to his chest and this was one of them.

"What time is it?" Elaine quickly looked at her wrist watch. A simple silver one she got on her seventeenth birthday from her father.

"Er, almost quarter to one."

"I must be going then." Descole mumbled as he quickly stood up. "There's something I have to attend to."

"Sure, sure." Elaine waved it off. It was never a surprise when Descole had to leave out of the blue. It was just something she was use to now. "It was nice talking to you."

"Likewise." After that, he made his leave in quick steps, leaving Elaine to continue on with her work. To continue digging in one of the caves with a trowel in hand. Not particularly giving a second thought for the mud clinging to her pants. They were already dirty anyway so what difference did a little more make? However, the faint sound of metal against hard rock made Elaine stop for a moment. Did she find something? It might have just been a rock, but just in case...

Elaine dropped the trowel and began digging up some of the earth with her bare hands until she found something that seemed stuck in the ground. Something that was a much lighter colour then the rest of the ground. Licking her dry lips, Elaine took the trowel back up and began using it to dig around the mystery object. Making hesitant movements to see if it was something worthwhile.

It was a thick slab of rock around the size of Elaine's hand and looked jagged at the bottom of it. It looked like it could have been a tablet of some sort, and Elaine new this was possibly something to be excited for and quickly stood up after stabbing the trowel in the ground to mark where she left off, and then felt the rock for any sort of engraving that might not be noticeable in this lighting. She a disheartened feeling came to her when she felt none, but she quickly went outside on the off chance there might be something painted on.

But any hope she had was dashed when she saw it was just another plain rock. Scowling, Elaine threw the rock back int he cave making a small echo heard faintly as she went back to where the tents were to get a drink of water. Times like these almost made her wish she had left as well, but alas her stubborn nature wouldn't allow that. She then began to mutter to herself in her native French.

_"Maybe I should go to the library again. Maybe look at some other books there." _Elaine tapped her fingers on the folding table as she thought that over before glancing to the tent where other books on loan from the local library were. _"Or maybe there might be something I missed in one of the books."_

It seemed worthwhile to look and see if anything could be found. It' not like there was much else to loose at this stage. And considering she would eventually be at a point where she would have to leave or risk losing her job at the museum, it felt like it would be better then nothing.

So after browsing through the small collection and picking one that she couldn't recall reading herself (or at least recently), she began reading through it to see if there was anything about the town that may give her a clue as to where the Golden Garden was. After all, it wasn't too far fetched the site was in the wrong place. It certainly wouldn't be the first time it happened.

Reading through the book, she recalled why she might not have looked at it thoroughly if any at all. It seemed to focus mainly on myths. While Elaine wasn't normally one to brush off anything that could be related to her work (after all, myths would have to have some basis somewhere in shape and form, and had to have a reason for being created), she just seemed to focus more on anything factual she could find during this dig. In retrospect, it was a bit of a mistake to put it lightly. But she wasn't going to put herself down for it.

She did however find some mildly interesting stories. One of them involving a girl playing a magical flute that could summon a creature. Likely the specter that was apparently the cause of destruction in Misthallery. Elaine began to think this over. Having no belief in such superstitious things, she hadn't paid much notice to what people had said exactly about all that was happening, but she thought back to try and remember what she could. She could faintly recall someone mentioning a tune being played around the time of these attacks. Possibly a flute though it was impossible to pinpoint the direction it came from. Thinking over the story and current events, the Frenchwoman began to wonder if by some possibility there really was a ghost.

"... Non. Non, just nonsense." Elaine muttered to herself as she flipped through the pages. Trying to find something else that could be of use. But there was nothing else to be found in it. She shut the book and leaned her elbows on the table as she clasped her hands together, and tried to think of something else. Thinking on it now, she recalled that there were some books that couldn't be removed from the library because of how old they were. The excavation team had the intention of visiting regularly before the Specter attacks so what harm could looking now do?

"Excuse me, miss?" Elaine inwardly sighed as she stood up. She just wanted to try and make some sort of progress. Turning in the direction of the voice, she saw a beady eyed man around her own age dressed in a brown coat over an orange shirt with a brown top hat to match. There was also a young boy wearing a blue cap with him who Elaine could faintly remember seeing from a picture at the mayor's house when she and a colleague had visited to retrieve some maps of the area. What was his name again? Ah oui, Luke.

"Can I 'elp you Monsieur?" Elaine asked politely. She may as well since she had no proper excuse to be rude.

"Sorry, but we were just passing by and I wanted to have a quick look at the excavation site before we continued on." Well, he was certainly more polite then Descole was in comparison if Elaine was honest.

"Well, there isn't much to show I'm afraid." Elaine explained. "We 'aven't found much that could give even a clue to the Golden Garden, and ever since this 'Specter' nonsense started the rest of my colleagues 'ave left!"

"Oh? So you're doing the work alone then? Miss...?"

"Hawthorne. Elaine Hawthorne." Elaine filled in. "And oui, they've left. Either scared or just given up on finding the Garden."

"And you haven't?"

"I'm too stubborn to leave." Elaine answered with a faint smile. "I'm determined to find this place. Just a gut feeling, you know?"

"Yes, I can remember that feeling too whenever I manage to go to archaeological digs." The man mused.

"Oh?" Elaine mentally grinned to herself, as she had a fairly good idea who this was.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but you wouldn't 'appen to be Professeur Layton, would you?" The surprised look on his face was enough for an answer, but hearing him confirm it really gave her a sense of accomplishment.

"Well, yes I am. Forgive me for not introducing myself earlier."

"Non, it's no trouble." Elaine said, her mood perking up a bit. "When I was in town earlier I 'eard someone mention the name Layton and I thought it might 'ave been you. I read your article on the Babylonians last year and I found it very interesting. The writing was très bon if I do say so myself." The professor gave a small chuckle, seemingly flattered.

"Well, thank you for the compliment. Has there been any other difficulties here?"

The talk was pleasant and while Luke stayed mostly quiet as the adults talked, he did manage to get some words in as well. Of course, they did have to leave and continue on with their investigation. But Elaine had no troubles with this since she had her own work to do as well. Plus if solving the mystery could bring back at least some of the other archaeologists, that would be a plus for her.

Having some company with Descole and meeting Professor Layton, it lifted Elaine's spirits and made her almost optimistic. Optimistic that perhaps she could probably do something worthwhile here.

But right now, she would do a little more digging. Then the town's library awaited her.


	5. A Little Rest

The library, while it did have a good collection for a simple town, didn't really help her in seeing if there was a possibility she was looking in the wrong place. The idea of it gave Elaine mixed feelings. If the Garden was elsewhere in Misthallery, then there was still hope of finding it. But that also meant there was a lot of time wasted by digging in the wrong place. Well, maybe not completely wasted since one or two things were found, but none were even remotely connected to the Golden Garden.

So that was how Elaine found herself back at camp the next day, pacing around in frustration as she tried to think to herself what to do now. Continue digging and see what happens seemed to be the most obvious solution. Maybe even the only one depending how things were. But at the same time, what if she was close? Would it be worth the risk to dig somewhere else, find nothing and give up then?

Neither of those ideas gave any source of comfort. Only failure.

The brunette could recall as a child how her grandfather had a wooden star puzzle that he would sometimes use, though it would take him a while to fit the pieces together. He sometimes even let her have a go and when she was younger it was nearly impossible if she didn't have someone helping her. As she got older though she seemed to get better at it, though it might have just been because of memory.

But Elaine could apply one thing from that to now. While she may have convinced herself otherwise, with her being the only person present the chances of finding the Garden seemed to lessen each day. It was pleasant, but Elaine wasn't hard headed enough to completely ignore that fact.

"_I swear this whole thing is making me go back and forth between happy and depressed in minutes._" Elaine muttered in French, as she held her head in her hands. "_… Maybe I should take the rest of the day off. Haven't taken a day off since we started._" Surely it couldn't hurt to take a little time off? Yes, there have been breaks, but mainly just to rest an hour or two and eat something and of course sleep. The rest of the day off couldn't affect too much of the work, could it?

She leaned back in her chair. Of course it couldn't hurt. She's been working here alone non-stop so if anything, she was entitled to have such a break. Rest her muscles from digging for a day at least. Yes, that did sound appealing. Maybe make some tea and read a book for pleasure. Maybe open that bottle of wine she brought with her to celebrate on the day the Golden Garden was found. Later on at night of course.

If anything, Elaine was rather thankful for that choice because Professor Layton had actually come back along with Luke and his assistant, Emmy. A wavey haired brunette with dark eyes and who seemed fairly cheerful in Elaine's opinion. While the visit was mainly to do with the Specter. they did accept Elaine's offer of tea.

"Thanks for the tea Ms. Hawthorne." Emmy said after Elaine handed her a freshly poured cup.

"Don't worry about it. It's nice to 'ave visitors and I was planning to take the rest of the day off anyway. And please, call me Elaine. Ms. Hawthorne makes me sound like a grouchy school teacher." Elaine joked after she sat down. "So you wished to talk with me about this Specter, Professeur?"

"Yes. I just found it a bit strange that the Specter hasn't come near here yet," explained Professor Layton, "One would think that if the Specter is connected to the Golden Garden it may have come here at some point."

"Well, it does seem to like more populated areas. Or at least, areas that should be populated when not evacuated," Elaine pointed out. "As for it not coming 'ere, to be 'onest I'm beginning to wonder if we've been digging in the wrong place all this time. It wouldn't be the first time it's 'appened."

"That is true," He agreed, "Though it must be incredibly frustrating."

"Trust me it is." Elaine muttered, seemingly to herself. "If you don't mind me asking, 'ow 'as the investigation been going?"

"It would appear that things that would not seem connected at first may be actually connected. Would you be familiar with the death of Evan Barde?"

"Evan Barde?" Elaine frowned, trying to think if she could recall anything. "I... think I 'eard the name somewhere. But I don't actually know anything about this man."

"He used to own most of the land here," Luke began. "But he died last year and the land went to my dad."

"Really? Didn't 'e any other family for it to go to?"

"There's Arianna and her brother Tony. But their not old enough so dad's planning on managing the land until their old enough. But, Arianna's sick so..." Elaine felt a little uncomfortable now. Luke seemed to be close friends with this girl from what she knew. So she tried to move back onto the conversation.

"So, er... 'Ow could 'is death be connected?"

"Well the executor of the estate was Chief Jakes, and he isn't exactly the most welcoming person I've met."

"Tried to send some thugs on us." Emmy muttered.

"'E's really not a nice person, I take it?" Elaine guessed.

"Be grateful you haven't had to deal with him yet."

"I'll take your word for it." Elaine agreed. "But do you really think they could be connected to the Golden Garden? I can understand, but it seems a bit... là-bas."

"I know, but it's not something that can be ignored either."

"So, what are you going to do next then?" Elaine questioned.

"... I have an idea, though there are some other people I need to talk to."

"Ah, well I shouldn't keep you away from that for too long then. The faster the case is solved the better, non?"

"Quite."

"Oh, I 'ave a request." Elaine began. "If it's not too much trouble."

"I'm sure it wouldn't be. What is it?" Professor Layton enquired. Elaine smiled sweetly as she said in a simple tone,

"When you do find who is behind this, let me know, won't you? It's their fault I'm working alone and I want to see if I still 'ave my skills from kick-boxing back in college by testing them out on that person."

"Erm..."

"You did kick-boxing?" Emmy asked, looking a little surprised. Elaine couldn't fight down the grin on her face.

"Oui. Third best on the team." Elaine then thought back to those years in college, an almost dreamy expression on her face. "I got the nickname "Elaine the Pain' because I accidently kicked a person in the mouth one time and knocked some teeth out. I was benched for the rest of that match but my opponent accepted my apology at least."

When the group did leave, Elaine spent the next while reading from one of her books and enjoying the warmth from the lowering sun.

A rest. A break. That was all she needed now.

**I'm glad to see that people are enjoying this story and that it has yet to suck :D That's what I'm getting from the reviews but hey, that's what reviews are for eh? To help give commentary and even show a liking for the story.**

**While I don't normal respond to reviews in stories, I feel I should probably respond to The Mocking J's review. Don't worry, I liked your reviews. I just figured that I should probably explain Descole's apparent cheerfulness. Don't get me wrong, I can see where you're coming from but I must admit that Descole and Elaine's shared interest in archaeology was not the main thing I had in mind. But I don't want to say the exact reason in case I spoil this story. But it will be revealed before the Specter arc is over.**

**As for Eternal Diva and Miracle Mask, yes. I intend to do them as well in this story :) I plan to go all the way to Azran Legacy, and add some chapters after that.**

**I also plan to add a sort of omake to some chapters. Basically just some funny sketches with a bit of OOC. Or at least my attempt at funny. It's something I'd like to try.**

**Man. This note took more space then I first thought it would XD**

**P.S MJ, I LOVE Randall's Road Trip :3**


	6. Pipes

With night approaching, Elaine had a small fire set up for some warmth. She ended up deciding not to drink her wine and just stick with tea. It was relaxing. A warm fire, tea with a few slices of bread and a good book. Simple, but relaxing.

She froze however as she faintly heard rumbles and tumbling bricks from a far distance. While she had yet to hear the flute that apparently controlled the Specter, she did on occasion hear it and the destruction it caused. Of course, Elaine reasoned with herself that ghosts and other supernatural beings in relation do not exist. But that still meant that there was something out there terrible enough to cause the destruction still. With that in mind, she had concern for Professor Layton and his friends. They did say they were planning something for the Specter. There was always a possibility of them being hurt.

Then there was Descole. It had been some time since she had seen him last. Or at least it felt like a long time. He aggravated her, true, but it was nice to talk with someone about archaeology. She knew the Mayor had some interest as he did mention it but of course with their separate jobs and such the idea of just coming around for talk seemed a bit laughable.

She didn't hate Descole, that much Elaine guarantee, though she wasn't sure if they could be called friends either. Probably more along the lines of close acquaintances. That sounded about right. But if anything were to happen to him…

Elaine scoffed and went back to her reading.

Descole was a grown man and didn't seem bothered by the Specter. He had to have been capable of looking after himself.

The next day, Elaine had originally planned to look over some of the maps. To check if there might be a place that could indicate where the Golden Garden might be. But she thought of the Professor, Emmy and Luke and a bit of her conscience rose up. Professor Layton didn't go into details with her about his plan, and for all she knew they could have been de-

Elaine ceased that thought. No one had died yet. Why would they start now? Besides, for all she knew Elaine could have just been hearing things last night.

But still… Maybe it couldn't hurt to just take a little more time off. Just to make sure they were fine. It was just going to bother her until she found the end result anyway like most of her worries did.

As Elaine walked away from the site, she chuckled a bit to herself. If she wasn't careful, she would end up doing nothing at all.

Seeing new destruction wasn't too surprising. At least Elaine wasn't hearing things the night before. That much she could confirm. Now if only she could find-

_CRASH!_

It had been a blur of brown, yellow and blue for Elaine. Groaning a little as she sat up on the ground, she saw that the very people she had been looking for had in fact crashed into her while running from… From something.

"Terribly sorry, Elaine. Are you alright?" Professor Layton had offered a hand out to Elaine who took it gratefully.

"O-oui, I'm fine. Merci." Elaine murmured as she was helped up onto her feet. "Might I ask why you were running?"

"We, erm… Just broke out of jail." Emmy was the one to answer, before Luke or Professor Layton could get a chance. Elaine simply stared, not entirely sure if she heard a hundred percent correctly.

"P-pardon moi?" The Frenchwoman couldn't understand how they could have ended up from trying to catch the Specter one night and all of a sudden end up in jail.

"Yes, you see Chief Jakes found us after the attack last night and accused us of being the perpetrators." Explained Professor Layton.

"Can 'e actually do that?" Elaine questioned, trying to keep the frustration from her tone. "You weren't 'ere when the attacks began so 'ow can 'e do that?!"

"He likely plays a bigger role than we anticipated." After this musing, the Professor gave a thoughtful look to a pipe nearby. "Elaine, do you ever hear the Specter's Flute playing?"

"I've never 'eard it." Elaine answered.

"Would there be one of these pipes near the excavation site?" The Professor gestured to the pipe he had been looking at. Taking a quick look at it, Elaine shuck her head.

"Non. Not that I've noticed. Why?"

"Well, I think I may have found the source of the music."

"Really, Professor?" asked Emmy, looking to the pipe with an unsure look.

"Yes. Likely the location where all these pipes lead to is where the flute is being played. Because all of the pipes are spread so diversely across town it makes it impossible to pinpoint the exact location when first heard."

"So, we just have to find that place then!"

"They lead to the lake," Luke spoke up, "The lake behind Arianna's house."

"We best make our way there then, and get to the bottom of this mystery."

"Can I come to?" Elaine asked, albeit with slight hesitance. "It's just that I'm curios about this case as you probably already know and there asn't been much 'ope at the dig site so..."

"Well, I see no reason why not." The Professor didn't seem too sure of that answer however but he seemed willing enough to comply, much to Elaine's joy.

She could use a bit of excitement at the moment.

**Thanks for the review BlackCrowsFrostDragons :) I know I really shouldn't underestimate myself, I just don't want to end up as some sort a narcissist who thinks their better then what they are. As for your question, when it comes to people Elaine will meet, I want to keep it realistic as possible. Since Elaine is only in Misthallery for the Golden Garden and is solely focused on that, she wouldn't exactly have time to meet with the locals with the exception of the Mayor. **

**Also, Elaine would either not be aware of the black market or just ignore it (As she would see no need to go there unless related to work), so coming in contact with the Black Ravens kind of diminishes there (Not including when Elaine has to go to the market get food etcetera). **

**There probably would be some contact during the standoff against Descole and his deadly machine of doom, but since the Garden is discovered some time after that, well… Elaine will be in archaeology heaven XD So she wouldn't really have much time for the Black Ravens. Maybe Arianna and Tony since being the only archaeologist who knows of the Garden while Arianna's there to get better from her illness. Elaine isn't going to wait for the rest of her colleagues to show and will just examine as much as she can without destroying or disturbing anything :)**

**I'm glad to hear Elaine's a character to be fond of. It was fairly fun when I began to create her in my head. :) My only regret so far is the title of the story. I don't hate it, but I feel I could possibly do better. Or maybe I'm just being a perfectionist XD**


	7. Truth Revealed

Elaine tapped her fingers on the desk of the interrogation room with impatience. She began wondering when it just seemed to go down hill so suddenly. First, she and the rest of Professor Layton's group went up to the Barde estate where she met Arianna and her brother Tony. She was thankful that the Professor didn't seem to think of them as suspects. They didn't seem the kind to be involved with criminal actions. Even if Arianna had been accused of being a witch. Though that was utter nonsense to her.

Arianna did however have the Specter's Flute however, a dark peach coloured ocarina, and played it out from across the water. There a large aquatic creature that looked like a mixture of sea cow and seal rose up. A creature named Loosha. Elaine couldn't stop grinning as she recalled the creature. While Elaine may not have seemed the type of person, she did have an incredibly weakness for cute things and Loosha... Loosha was just so adorable in Elaine's eyes! And it's cry, OH, so freaking cute! Elaine actually giggled to herself before continuing her train of thought to more bitter things.

Chief Jakes. Now, Elaine had always been thought as a child to wait until you've met a person before fully judging them. And while most things Elaine had heard of the police chief these days had not been the most pleasant, that lesson that had been more or less ingrained in her to some degree had made her want to believe he was just... Very, very stupid.

To put it in the nicest of ways.

But then he actually appeared and captured Loosha, and Arianna. Taking pride in arresting a girl no older then ten or eleven. Truly, an achievement to be proud of.

Then of course, the reason she was in the interrogation room to begin with. Apparently, questions of validity of the dig were brought into question. Questions such as whether it was actually legal or not, and if finding the Golden Garden was just a ruse. Naturally Elaine called nonsense but Jakes said she would have to go to the station where some government official would be talking with her. Elaine had been very reluctant but in cases like this it's best to just go along with sometimes.

So she reluctantly left with the pig headed bast-... git. It had been a bit of comfort to hear the Professor say he would try and help her as soon as they could. True, Elaine knew they would mainly be focusing on helping Arianna and Loosha and the town of course, but knowing they cared enough to promise her some sort of assistance helped ease her mind. She had told herself that she was fine and there was nothing to worry about.

However, thinking the apparent charges over, she did know there could be something genuine here. Here she was, a woman in the dig site where the rest of the archaeologists left. Digging and looking for the Golden Garden. It didn't help too much that she was the only person there. She could sort of understand why it might look suspicious in some ways. Elaine would just have to play nice and hope this was just a misunderstanding she could sort out easily enough.

"Well, girly. The man's finally here." Elaine didn't show any specific emotion to the chief of police. Not even a wrinkle of disdain from her nose. Instead, she tilted her head to the side.

"Désolé? Je ne parle pas anglais." Elaine said innocently. Well, she'd play fair with this government official. Jakes however was a special case. Said man narrowed his eyes in annoyance.

"Don't try to pull that on me, Frenchie. I know you speak English, I heard you!"

"Et j'aurais pensé qu'ils auraient une personne compétente en charge de la police ici, mais à la place ils ont mis un cochon imbécile tête comme vous en charge." Elaine simply smiled. She could at least give a little insult here and there, and was glad she could still speak French at a fast enough pace to confuse Jakes. The man blinked and looked back behind him,

"Er, do you want a translator? She's only speaking French."

"Pas de ma faute, vous avez commencé il. Creep!"

"Dis you just call me a creep?!"

"I'll take it from here." Elaine frowned, as she could here the voice from behind Jakes. It sounded familiar...

But seeing him enter just made Elaine confused. The man she hadn't seen for a while. But he just simply smirked, his eyes covered by his mask as he closed the door behind him.

"Descole?" Elaine questioned, furrowing her eyebrows. "What are you doing 'ere?"

"I apologise we had to meet again this way, Ms. Hawthorne," Descole began. "But when I didn't find you at the excavation site I wasn't sure if I would have a chance to find you myself so I had that blundering fool keep an eye out for you on the off chance you were about town somewhere."

"What? You did..." Elaine wasn't sure what to say. But the bad feeling she first had when meeting Descole began to rise, though slowly.

"But of course. I needed someone to keep this 'Specter' business quiet until I found the Golden Garden," Descole went on calmly. The somewhat friendly tone he had used before wasn't present. "So while he wasn't my first choice, he is easy to manipulate. So funny what people will do for promises of power. False ones at that."

"What are you talking about." Elaine quickly stood from her chair as Descole walked towards the table. She didn't move back right away but she seemed ready to move, almost immediately.

"Now, now Ms. Hawthorne. Don't disappoint me. You're a fairly intelligent woman so surely you can piece it together by now since some of the clues hve just been laid out." drawled Descole. Elaine began to pale, realization coming down on her as she stepped back, shaking.

"It... It was you. You did all this. The Specter..."

"One of my creations." Descole filled in, a little smugly. "I am a scientist after all. I needed to find the Garden and with the legends of this ghostly apparition, it was the perfect cover. Especially with the fog and mist of this pathetic town."

"But... Why did you-"

"Visit you?" Descole interrupted Elaine. "Well, like I said during our earlier meetings, your being present was unexpected. I was happy at first for your colleagues to be gone, but it was after that I then realised that they could have been useful. So for you to stay was a slight bit of fortune for me. You would continue your work while I did mine, and if it seemed you found anything of use, it would a wonderful thing for myself." He stepped around the table and Elaine moved around though she tried not to back herself into a corner. He smirked towards her, Elaine's growing fear becoming obvious.

"But that wasn't all that intrigued me. You read the Azran glyphs. Not a talent many possess and there's only so much I can find from translated documents. As you have probably figured out by now, my dear, you have some value to me."

"And what makes you think I'll go along with this?" Elaine demanded, trying to get her mind straight and thinking. His ghostly chuckle didn't help whatsoever.

"Ms. Hawthorne. Whoever said there was ever a choice. Granted, I would have happily employed you but given your poor acception to this, it seems force is need." Elaine's eyes widened and she did the first thing she could think of. He right leg swung up to kick his chest, but he caught it with ease so without thinking Elaine grabbed the table for balance and swung her other leg up. Descole however immediately let got of her leg causing her to fall hard on her back. He tutted as Elaine groaned in pain.

"Honestly Ms. Hawthorne, you disappoint me at the moment. And here I thought you were intelligent." Elaine glared up at the man, and began backing away until she hit a wall.

"And here I thought you were nice." Elaine muttered back.

"Now, if it's any consolation, I did find you to be pleasant to talk with. It can be hard to find someone to talk with about matters such as archaeology." Descole said calmly. Elaine swallowed as she continued to glare.

"So what 'appens now? You kill me?" Descole chuckled as she shuck his head.

"Why, of course not. Like I said, you have value to me and I won't just throw it away. It could be worse for you though. You could be Mrs. Triton and Mr. Noble." Elaine furrowed her eyebrows but more realization hit her as she felt ill.

"The Mayor's wife and their butler?"

"Yes. I had to be close enough to town and my devices, didn't I? Capturing the butler and taking his place was fairly easy enough." Desolce explained. "Mrs. Triton however... Well, she was one of the few intelligent people in town. She seemed to see through my disguise with ease. It was fortunate she often went on long trips without telling anyone."

"So you kidnapped them?"

"Hostages really. Not that it matters to you." Descole smirked as he brought out handcuffs hidden in his pocket.

"Because if anything, you were damned to this situation from the start."


	8. A Brief Flood

When being kidnapped by a masked man who may or may not have some sociopathic tendencies, who is capable of creating machinery to destroy a town (willingly I may add) in search of a garden that may not even be there, one would think the smart thing to do would be to stay quiet and go along until a chance to escape approached.

Elaine Hawthorne was not one of these people.

"Let me go!" Elaine yelled as she tugged against Descole's stronger grip. He had used the cuffs from the police station on her. Elaine had tried kicking him but he would either just grunt in irritation or push her away from him to throw her off balance and cause her to fall to the ground hard before quickly dragging her back up again, not giving her a chance to escape.

"Will you just… Just shut up you insufferable woman!" Descole growled. If Jakes wasn't bragging on how he caught a benign sea creature and arrested a sick little girl, there probably would have been people around to hear Elaine's yells. As such, he yells went unanswered.

"What did you expect?!" Elaine spat. "That I'd be too terrified to yell?!"

"No. I expected you to have enough common sense NOT to yell." Countered Descole.

"'Ow's that common sense?! I don't want to be kidnapped!"

"Who does?" Descole said dryly, continuing to drag Elaine through more secluded parts of Misthallery. Elaine only snarled as she continued her vain attempts at freedom. A part of her knew that it would lead her nowhere in the end, but she wasn't going down without a fight. Though she wanted to try and think of some other way to get away. Kicking seemed ineffective and she was in no position to punch. She thought for a moment and for a strange reason, the poet Sylvia Plath came to mind briefly. One would wonder why that poet of all people would come to mind, especially since Elaine only studied her as part of English exams in Secondary School, but she remembered something the poet did when she met her future husband Ted Hughs.

Glaring at Descole, Elaine moved around him and tried to bite his cheek. It sort of worked in a way. While she didn't bite any part of Descole's face, she startled or shocked him enough to shove her away from him, further then he had been when she tried to kick him. Elaine quickly got to her feet and made an attempt to run. Not thinking. No definite location in mind. Just running on and hope to not be caught.

But she was caught. Descole was faster then Elaine expected and as such was caught off guard when her ponytail was tugged back sharply, making her yelp in shock.

"That. Was a very. Stupid move, woman!" The angry was clear in Descole's voice and Elaine was beginning to regret her plan already. Hell, a part of her was beginning to regret coming and staying here in the first place! Her fear rose sharply once she felt his hand on her neck and instantly her hands went to try to keep it away.

"Still frightened I'll end you're life?" Descole questioned, but Elaine knew he didn't have to. She could hear it in his voice how obvious it was she was scared to him. "Such a shame. I wasn't lying when I said you were pleasant conversation. But alas, the Garden awaits me." Descole's hand eased away from Elaine's frantic ones before grabbing onto her between her shoulder and neck.

"Pleasant dreams."

Whatever Elaine's dreams were, they were forgotten when she was sharply woken up with her head hitting something hard. Groaning a bit she moved a hand to touch her hand only for the other to be tugged along. She inwardly winced, as the last two hours or so came rushing back to her. She opened her eyes just as her head hit the hard surface again.

"Ah! Dang it!" Elaine hissed as she forced herself to wake up fully.

"Ah, so you're awake now. Such a pity you missed the beginning." Elaine looked behind her sharply and saw the back of a seat. She already knew it was Descole, but she shuffled to the side just to try and find out what was going on. From what she could tell they were in what was likely his Specter creation, and they were in town.

"You already missed my attempts to put an end to that overgrown water pest, but there's still time to watch Layton meet his end." Elaine clenched her fists as she saw the look of Descole's face... Or at least the part she could see. To see he was actually enjoying this... Elaine gritted her teeth. She wasn't going to just stand by and do nothing. Not when she knew there was something she could do.

She felt a twinge of gratitude for the handcuffs then and there.

Elaine stood up and raised her arms quickly before bringing them down to use the chain connecting the cuffs to choke Descole. It was drastic, but it was all Elaine had. It worked since Descole had to use both his hands to lessen the pressure. Elaine was a bit thankful for this too though. She only wanted to distract Descole, not kill him. And if this was hurting him, that was a bonus.

However, he soon got the chain off of him and stood up to shove Elaine back, nearly causing her to fall off the machine.

"You just don't know when to just stop, do you?" He spat, no doubt glaring in anger at Elaine. Elaine winced a little since she now had to try and think of something from here...

What was that sound?

Elaine looked over Descole's shoulder and saw water rushing down towards them, shocking both her and Descole. But Elaine didn't bother to think of where the water may be from exactly, she saw it as her ticket out!

"Désolé, monsieur." Elaine muttered as she stepped onto the edge. "But I think this is where we part ways." Elaine moved to jump back as Descole reached out to grab her, only managing to snatch her scarf before she kicked at his chest to force him away. She fell and hit the water just as it was rushing through the Specter's legs. Submerged briefly in tepid water, she kicked herself up and grabbed onto a awing over a door before she could be swept too far away, and just clung on as the water felt as if it was trying to rip through her.

But the water eventually lowered enough for Elaine to safely drop down with a small splash without injury.

"Elaine, are you alright." Emmy had rushed out of building that Elaine guessed she, the Professor along with Luke, Arianna and Tony went into during the brief flood. The concern was clear and Elaine just smiled sheepishly.

"Well... This was definitely not boring."

* * *

**OMAKE THEATRE! Where Layton characters are chibi-fied!**

* * *

Descole smirked as he took off his Doland disguise, having it disappear into a void in which it would never return. All there was left to do was for his theme to play and…

He frowned. That wasn't his theme. It… It sounded like Crazy la Paint.

"Who changed my theme?" Descole asked the crowd in a deathly calm tone. No one answered and Descole growled a little. "I said, who changed my theme?"

"I did!" Descole and the rest looked to one of the roofs. There, a triumphant looking Elaine was holding a tape player (Because CD's don't exist in this strange universe where you can't tell if it's Victorian, early 20th century or just plain steampunk). She grinned wickedly down at Descole who looked incredibly pissed.

"How did you escape… Ms. Hawthorne, change it back to my theme. Now!"

"Never!" Elaine began to cackle as she turned the volume up and held it over her head. Had Descole not been wearing his mask, his eyes would have been seen twitching. He grabbed some rocks from the ground and began throwing them at the laughing Frenchwoman.

So far, he was missing.

"Descole! It's not gentlemanly to throw rocks at a lady!" Professor Layton scolded, making his way to the masked man to stop him.

"SHUT IT YOU ENGLISH STEREOTYPE AND VICTORIAN WANNABE!" Descole snapped before throwing a rock at the poor professor, knocking him. Any other time, he would be delighted but he was too busy throwing rocks to pay attention to the professor or Emmy, Luke and Clark when they went to check on him.

Eventually one of the rocks hit Elaine's ankle, throwing her off balance. To save herself, Elaine let herself slide down the roof tiles and fly off, arms spread like a majestic eagle/angle before having a landing perfectly on her feet.

"HEY! YOU ALMOST KILLED ME!" Elaine yelled but stopped when Descole moved towards her.

"Change my theme back now!"

"Never!" Elaine began to run from Descole in a very comical way, running around very confused townspeople. Descole being Jean fucking Descole however, was able to catch up to Elaine faster then she would have liked.

"Merde!" Elaine swore, before grabbing one of the fatter children of the Black Ravens. "SAVE ME LITTLE FAT CHILD!"

"Wha-." The poor boy however was quickly shoed by Elaine so he was rolling towards Descole like a barrel. A barrel that Descole easily jumped over.

"GET BACK HERE!"

Elaine ignored him still and ran into the crowd. Descole followed, but he seemed to have lost her. Grabbing two people's shoulders, he rose himself up to have a better view.

"Bonjour~." Elaine chirped. She seemed to have had the same idea as him. But did it to mock him as she was further away from him.

This scenario went on for fifteen minutes more or less. The crowd wanted to just leave already, but Elaine and Descole were two fast in grabbing peoples shoulders for them to just simply do that. They were stuck.

However, it ended when on the final time, Elaine was actually right next to Descole.

"AHA!" Descole then grabbed Elaine by her sexy French neck (Because as a stereotype, French people are deemed sexy in fanfiction) and started to throttle her Homer and Bart Simpson style.

"WHERE IS IT!? WHERE'S THE FUCKING TAPE PLAYER?!"

"I… Don't… 'Ave… It!" Elaine choked out inbetween chokes.

By this stage, the Professor was up again, albeit he had a sore head.

"What do we do?" Clark whispered to him. Descole seemed too distracted by Elaine to destroy the town.

"I… You call the police. Maybe the army as well. I'm not sure how many Specterbots there are exactly."


	9. Brief Joy

Around the time Professor Layton first arrived in Misthallery, Elaine herself was wondering if she would ever find anything worthwhile that she could translate. That way at the least, it would have lifted her spirits up a bit more. So when the small group did find a seal hidden under the lake before Loosha had revealed it, she felt a bit of pride in being able to translate the riddle of the seal while the Professor had managed to unlock the seal for all of them to enter.

To say the sight of the Golden Garden would have made Elaine drool had she lacked dignity would have been a bigger understatement then saying Descole was willing to hurt people.

Of course the entire thing hadn't gone out how Elaine herself had imagined the scenario. She figured that with everyone gone she alone would find it herself and as such would gain a majority of credit for it. It was vain of her to think like that, Elaine could admit to that. But in all fairness, with the others gone she had been doing work, all on her own. Plus, being a fairly honest person she couldn't have ignored that Professor Layton had solved the riddle so a good amount of credit would have gone to him.

Elaine couldn't deny that she felt a little bitter about that. She had been here for ages but found little to relate to the Golden Garden, yet Professor Layton was only here a few days and suddenly the Garden is found. But thinking it out reasonably, to start holding a grudge against the Professor would have been a bit childish and ignorant. The Garden was found and that's all that should matter. True, for a while it would have to remain a secret for the time being. Young Arianna needed it more the field of archaeology did since the clean air would help her health. To deny her that would have made Loosha's sacrifice before her death vain.

Yes. It was still good. There was good to come out of this so Elaine could smile a bit thinking about it. Besides, being the only archaeologist from the excavation team to know, that gave her a head start on everyone else! Making notes and attempted diagrams of different plants and such. Attempted sine Elaine had never been the best artist. At most, she could make rough sketches and it would still not be perfect in her eyes.

She knew that Professor Layton was planning to make his own report to publish as soon as Arianna got better. Being a university professor and all. But Elaine would be ahead of the rest of her colleagues. That alone made her happier then she had been. There was also an added bonus to this.

Doing this work now, within the Golden Garden, felt like insulting Descole. And that alone made this a whole lot sweeter.

But with all her notes being made day by day, she had a twinge of paranoia. Paranoia wasn't exactly the best word but close enough. After the incident with Descole, she was a bit more protective of her work. Even when she was just simply admiring the tropical-like scenery, that tiny cloud of possibilities rained over her. Even from the back of her mind when she tried to shove them away.

However, she was able to find a way to shove these worries away.

Clark Triton, the now ex-mayor of Misthallery, had been very kind to offer Elaine to store her notes and such in his family home until she left to head back to London. The brief wonder if felt partially responsible for her encounter of Descole in some way, but she didn't bring it up. That thought might not have been on the man's mind and his offer may have simply been out of kindness.

One could argue if it was safe to leave her work under the Triton's roof, but in comparison to leaving it all in a tent when you are the only person to guard it, it seemed like the perfect decision. He, along with his wife Brenda, even invited her to dinner every so often. And since Elaine's main diet since she came here has been rice and bread rolls, she felt no need to deny the invitation.

"Merci again for the dinner, it was very lovely." Elaine said as she prepared to make her leave.

"It was no trouble. Are you sure you don't want to spend the night? It is getting late?" Brenda offered, not for the first time. While better compared to when they were just released from their imprisonment, both Brenda and Doland Noble still retained a bit of paleness even while most of it had faded, and having only been fed enough to keep them from starving they had lost some weight during that time. Elaine was sure she could still faintly see some dark shadows under their eyes. She also noticed that her son Luke seemed to gain more of her looks then from his father.

"Non, I should get back to the excavation site. I need to sort through some things. I'll probably 'ave to start packing some things soon. I'll 'ave to go back to London eventually. Can't exactly stay out 'ere forever, can I?"

"No, I suppose not." Brenda gave a small smile. "When do you plan to leave exactly?"

"Er, well I'm due back in around a month I think," Elaine said, thinking it over, "Though, I plan to vist ma famille at least a week before 'and so I suppose within three weeks."

"Will you need to call your colleagues to take some equipment away?"

"I was planning too some time during the week."

"Well you're welcome to use the phone here if you need to call them."

"Merci, and merci again for letting me keep the, er... More important notes 'ere."

"It's no trouble whatsoever."

"Well, I better get going now. Merci et bonne nuit." Elaine said, before making her leave into the night. Walking in a calm, relaxed manner, but becoming more tense when near darker corners. While she would never admit to it, a part of her had always been somewhere between nervous and afraid of walking alone at night. Possibly a fear instilled in her from an uncle back in France who worked with the police and told her, along with her cousin Madeline, horror stories of incidents that happened to women who had simply been minding their own business as they walked darkened streets. Madeline never seemed as bothered by those stories but a part of Elaine was. But yet she forced herself to walk to and from home and the London museum each day, even if it was dark. Trying to force what she believed to be an irrational fear out of her.

Arriving at the site, Elaine first went to the tent where she had put several fake documents. She easily faked them by simply writing nonsense in French. Why? She figured if someone did try and take anything related to the Golden Garden, then at least they would have gotten fake materials. Looking through the papers she made, it seemed they were all there still. Although, one or two weren't in the exact order she recalled them being in. But this thought was ignored. It was probably her imagination.

After putting them down, Elaine thought to herself what she would do now. She could just go to bed, but she wasn't feeling completely tired just yet. The thought of the wine bottle she brought came to mind. She had yet to open it, so why not drink it now. Her mind first wandered to remembering where she had put the glasses but halted it. As long as no one knew, what harm did drinking from the bottle do? Maybe she'll find one glass though and pour a little in. Just in case someone does come up so she can pretend she wasn't drinking straight from the bottle.

But she doubted that would happen and planned to really let her hair down for the rest of the night.

So she went into her tent, a relaxed smile on her face as she lit up the hanging lamp. But the smile quickly turned into a frown. The first feeling of unease in her stomach came from the sight of the wine bottle in question, opened on the table and poured into two wineglasses. A part of her just wanted to leave right away, but she spotted something else on the table. But the dim lighting kept it from being identified. She had a faint idea from what she could make out, but wanting to make sure, she took tentative steps towards the table and hesitantly picked up the item in question.

It was a short scarf, in a shade of light blue. Strange. It looked like the one she had...

Elaine's eyes widened and the scarf slipped from her hand as her feet moved backwards automatically. But that was before she felt a small chain press against her throat. She yelped and gripped onto it, trying to tug it away desperately as she choked. Letting out the much needed air that was escaping her. Her own panic certainly wasn't helping her out either. She wanted to kick, to move her legs or even try to duck down under the chain, anything! But fear was causing her mind to become muddled.

"Not so nice on the receiving end, is is Hawthorne?" Elaine should have known she had not seen the last of him, as he spoke with the sneer clear in his voice. But with the chain suddenly no longer pressing against her throat, she stumbled foreword and gripped onto the chair at the table. Her other hand going to her throat where she could faintly feel the marks left by chains, coughing as she reluctantly looked back behind her.

Descole stood at the entrance, the handcuffs used to choke her still in hand. He seemed to be apathetic as she could not tell what exactly he was feeling though Elaine was sure it was rage.

"You're smarter then I expected Hawthorne." His voice held no praise. Just spoken as facts as he walked up to her side and helped himself to one of the glasses. "But not smart enough. I may not be fluent in the French language but I know enough to tell you just wrote anything you could think of in those notes. No doubt the Tritons have something to keep them safe. Otherwise you likely wouldn't have trusted them to hold such details." Elaine's eyes widened as she heard that. How did he...?

"Did you really think I would just forget about you?" He questioned casually. As if about the weather. He took a sip of the wine before he went continued. "No. There is much to be done yet. Much more."

"Such a shame I don't agree." Elaine muttered as she let go of the chair to move back quickly. But Descole was faster and grabbed her by the front of her shirt and lifted her up high enough just for her feet to hover over the ground.

"If I hadn't spent so much time talking with you then I would have possibly called you a dullard by now, you silly, silly girl. There was never a choice for you. Ever." Descole took another sip. "You have good taste. Not what I would have used for tonight, but still." Elaine scowled and kicked hard at his stomach. It seemed he didn't expect that one as he grunted in pain and let the brunette go. Elaine backed away quickly, her eyes looking out for something to defend herself. She may have been a good kick boxer in college, but most of her strength was in her legs and she doubted she could just kick Descole non-stop.

Descole sighed and put the glass down.

"You always do things the hard way, don't you Hawthorne?"

Elaine didn't wait any longer. She turned around to run. Planning to go to the first house she could. Even if she had to run to the Triton or Barde estates!

But she was caught again. And no sooner had her hand been caught and pulled behind her back, had a cloth been pressed over her mouth and nose. Strong fumes forcing a tiredness over Elaine. She weekly tried to pull away, but it was in vain.

The last thing she heard was a simple chuckle.

* * *

**OMAKE THEATRE! Where Layton characters are chibi-fied!**

* * *

"So why are we 'ere?" Elaine questioned Descole as she looked up at the castle. It was a strange one in her mind. It was resting on what in Elaine's mind was an amount of rock as thin as a needle. Elaine didn't even want to go over the bridge but was forced to by the masked bastard beside her.

"Because people have been spreading rumours that I've been fornicating with the owner of this castle and frankly I don't like it. So I'm getting to the source of this problem to cease it." Descole responded.

"But… Why am I 'ere?"

"Because Raymond's the only one who knows how to makes the horses move and needs to be with them in case we need a quick getaway, and I might need back up here."

"… Oh."

It was by then that the door opened, and a butler with a noise bigger then Sarah Jessica Parker's appeared. He was grey skinned Elaine was tempted to ask if he needed a blood transfusion. Before the butler could speak, Descole spoke arrogantly.

"Alright, parrot-human bastard. I want to talk to your master. Now!"

"… This way." The butler muttered after a small sigh. He was use to the insults regarding his pointy nose by now. He wanted a raise to pay for plastic surgery but his master was pretty stingy. More stingy then Scrooge really. And that's saying a lot.

So our heroine and her-… Heroine and… The closest thing to a hero in this story ("HEY!") were led through the halls. During which, Descole whispered to Elaine,

"Ms. Hawthorne, for the love of God don't look directly into his eyes. They say the owner of this place too beautiful for mortal eyes, and is a descendent of Duke Venomania and is the only known descendent to have the same power of the Sin of Lust as his ancestor."

"… Seriously?"

"Serious as a motherfucker."

Eventually, they arrived to a room a window that was actually from the house of Aunt Josephine from 'A Series of Unfortunate Events'. If you know the story, you would know the window should be ruined, but the master of the house ordered the butler, Nigel, to find every single piece and have the window placed in the castle to view the moon.

The very master was standing in front of it, staring at the moon. This is how he greeted all guests to be honest. He had secret sensors put up to sense when people are several minutes away, so that he could go and stand in front of the window and looking to the sky or moon before looking to said guest. This would create a dramatic effect. It worked best at night, and was perfect during a full moon.

Why did he greet his guests this way?

He had nothing better to do.

Anyway, he was fairly young looking, with the softest looking blonde hair and most beautiful shade of green eyes you could ever imagine. Sure enough he had to have been to most beautiful man in the world and on one or two occasions had been asked out by men having mistaken him for a woman.

"Ah, welcome to my…" But he trailed off once he saw Descole, and his eyes gained a demented gleam filled with lust and passion.

Descole already felt ill and wanted to vomit.

"Descole~." The man cooed, walking towards said man who was firmly standing his ground. "I was hoping you would arrive. I have a restaurant table reservation followed by a walk on the beach before a bed for two with our names on it~."

"He is beautiful." Elaine murmured, briefly enchanted by this man before snapping out of it long enough to ask, "What's your name?"

"I, am Duke Anton Herzen-." Said Duke stopped however as he noticed Elaine. He stared at her before glaring at Descole. "Who the hell is this?"

"Er, this is Elaine Hawthorne. I… took her to live and work for me… Without her permission."

"You kidnapped me!" But Elaine's yell went unnoticed quickly enough as Anton glared in jealously.

"You're… cheating on me with this Parisienne harlot?!" Elaine frowned.

"I'm not a 'arlot, and I'm from Burgundy-.!"

"Shut up, you!" Anton hissed towards Elaine before looking back to Descole.

"I wait for you to finally come to me, after convincing people that we're meant to be! And this is what you do?! You bringing your Roxanne-wannabe with you?! What is wrong with you! This is supposed to be our night! What are we supposed to do with this third wheel!" Anton pointed sharply at Elaine. "I want her gone, now!"

"I'd rather not loose the closest thing I have to protection here." Descole muttered.

"Well you have to make a choice damn it!" Anton shrieked. Stomping the ground hard with his foot.

"It's either me, the Sexy Duke of Folsense, Anton Herzen! Or that home wrecker French-be-otch!"

END OF PART ONE!


	10. A Ride

First feeling herself regain consciousness, Elaine didn't immediately jump up like her body wanted her to. Descole could be nearby and she would have a better advantage if he still thought she was unconscious. So instead, she silently took a deep breath of air through her nose and blinked her eyes. Just to make sure that what she was currently seeing was just her imagination. But it wasn't. Just a dull whiteness.

Starting to notice the texture of fabric from the white, Elaine quickly deduced that Descole likely blindfolded her to keep her from knowing her own location. As much as she despised giving him any amount of praise, she had to give some credit that he wasn't taking a risk with her. Even more so since her hands were cuffed behind her this time.

Then she finally noticed the sounds of turning, creaking wheels along with marching clops. She wondered if that may have caused her to wake up in the first place, but tried to see if she could notice anything else. It was cooler then when she was last conscious, so it couldn't have been too long since then and was likely still night. There wasn't anything she could pick up by smell specifically but from sounds and smell alone she could confirm she was definitely not in a town or city. Probably no people around either now that she thought of it.

Thinking over some of the other details, Elaine guessed she was in some sort of carriage or cart or something drawn by horses. It almost made her want to snort at how pretentious it was of Descole. But no matter what she was in, she was seated so she wanted to try and see what side she was on. The feeling of the air felt a little stronger on the right side of her face, so Elaine shuffled her right foot to the side quietly as possible to try and confirm this. Feeling her foot hit the side softly gave her some relief she was right. Now she had to try and ease the blindfold off at least one eye.

It was a bit risky, but it was the only scenario she thought would work that also seemed believable enough to look like she was still asleep. Relaxing her body, she forced herself to act like a rag doll and slumped to the side, forcing down a wince as the side of her head hit the hard surface.

"Hm?" Elaine's heart nearly stopped as she heard the tone from her other side. Was Descole already on to her?

"Is everything alright Master?" The new voice raised a little curiosity in Elaine. The person was definitely male, and sounded older then Descole. Maybe around her father's age or a little more even. Elaine also noted the strong Scottish accent. If she was indeed in a carriage or cart, he was probably controlling the horses.

"... Everything's fine." was Descole's short response. Elaine felt some relief and waited a few more minutes before the next stage of her plan. Carefully she rubbed her head against the side, her heart racing in fear of being caught as she tried not to bring attention to herself. But her plan seemed to work as soon her right blue eye was able to make some details out.

She was in a cart. It was night time. They were in dark, thin woods. And most obviously she was kidnapped. Well, being kidnapped. Hopefully she would escape. She just had to think of another plan. And she did. Not the best idea she's ever had, but all she could do to try and get away. But if she failed... That thought was something Elaine did not want to ponder. She just wished she had had some of her wine now. Maybe the alcohol would have given her more courage. But she did it anyway.

While she may have been half blind doing it, she took a wild guess and sharply, her foot connected with the side of Descole's face, causing a yell of pain from the man.

"Master?!" Already on a adrenaline rush, and not thinking straight, Elaine forced herself out of the cart, landing on her back which wasn't the most pleasant since it made the cuffs dig into her skin hard. But she ignored the brief stinging sensation and forced herself up to run in the opposite direction of the carriage. She may not know where exactly she was, but she was sure she'd find someplace willing to help her. They would call the proper authorities and Elaine would go back to London, and get on with her life. She only wished she had time to try and get the blind off her other eye.

But feeling the familiar painful tug of her hair instantly had her clenching her teeth in frustration and to bite back the cry desperate to leave her throat.

"You are the one making things difficult for yourself. I do hope you are aware of that." Descole told her. Elaine could almost feel the anger in his voice and was almost questioning her choice of plan. But her spitfire nature chose that moment to shine despite likely making the situation much worse.

"And you made things difficult for yourself with that giant robot! You would 'ave just destroyed the Garden, and all you would 'ave 'ad would be ruins!" This was met with another sharp tug of her hair.

"The only mistake I made was underestimating Layton!" The name was spat out as if Descole had only realised at the lase minute he had put something poisonous in his mouth. "And I will greatly thank you not to mention any of it! Now, you can either act like a woman of your age and come willing, or you can act like a petulant child, still." Descole's voice alone sounded insulting let alone his words. Elaine was silent at first. But she soon turned her head to glance over her shoulder.

"I guess I'm a petulant child, disguised to be older." sneered Elaine in contempt.

She wasn't too surprised as she felt fingers move onto a point between her shoulders and neck dig deeply. She would have struggled had Descole tried dragging her back to the cart.

She hated to admit it, but he was smart enough to learn from experience. Even if he would never admit to mistakes.

* * *

**OMAKE THEATRE! Where Layton characters are chibi-fied!**

* * *

**NOTE: There may be a SLIGHT, teeny-weeny spoiler here for Azran Legacy if you squint.**

"It's either me, the Sexy Duke of Folsense, Anton Herzen! Or that home wrecker French be-otch!" Descole could only stare at the flamboyant crybaby. He was beginning to wonder if his attire was the reason he was practically combing fangirls out of his cloak every week or thought to be gay. But he wasn't going to change. His clothes made him look sophisticated, handsome and drop dead gorgeous.

Not to mention they showed off his fine ass legs.

"I don't care what you think." Descole finally told Anton. "I am in no relationship and never plan to be in one. Again." The last part was whispered under his breath in a sad tone so no one heard him. Elaine however glared up at him.

"What? I'm not good enough for you?"

"What!?" Descole looked at Elaine like she had gone mad.

"Please, honey. With that hair, it's a wonder he decided to kidnap you over me." Anton scoffed, putting one hand on his hip and with his other clicked his fingers.

"At least people actually come to me." Elaine scoffed. "When was the last time you 'ad company?!"

"When was the last time you had a manicure?!" Elaine narrowed her eyes at the smirking blonde.

"... Oh no you didn't, chienne."

"Yes. I did." Anton looked fully confident while Descole was wondering if maybe he should have left Elaine at home. No, he couldn't. She'd just try to escape again and maybe steal his tv and the stacks of cash he left about his house randomly due to his mistrust of banks.

But he forgot about all that the moment he saw Elaine kick the pretentious Duke in the face. He was shocked, but not as much as the beautiful man as he weakly stood up and took out his hand mirror. He shrieked as he saw a bruise developing over his right eye.

"You sassy girl bastard! You wrecked my beautiful face!"

"Deal with it." Elaine shrugged.

"Okay, girlfriend! Now it's on!"

That's when it began! The fight to end all fights! The ultimate...

...?

The... Ultimate... Slap, fight?

That's right. Elaine and Anton were just slapping each other silly. Just, going around the room slapping each other. In order to spare his master some dignity, Nigel played 'Duel of the Fates' from Phantom Menace to try and make it seem more epic then it really was.

Naturally, it didn't work.

The slapping went on for an hour at least, during which Nigel served Descole some tea while the both of them waited patiently for one of the two to drop from exhaustion. But alas, they were too super pissed off to just stop.

"... Alright, this is getting boring." Descole picked the teapot from Nigel's hand and threw it at Anton. The contact broke the fragile teapot and Anton shrieked as hot tea spilled over him.

"AH! MY GODLY LOCKS! MY FACE! MY BEAUTIFUL EFFEMINATE FACE THAT MAKES ME AN EASY TARGET TO BE WRITTEN AS GAY OR FLAMBOYANT IN STORIES! AHH!" Elaine backed off and stood by Descole. Ready to use the masked man as a human shield. Anton was whimpering and quickly looked to his mirror. But then he saw something that made him pale in horror. On his forehead where the teapot hit him, there was a tiny cut that in reality wasn't noticeable. But Anton was so vain about his looks he could see it as clear as one would their nose or eyes.

That's when he gave out the loudest shriek man has ever heard.

In London...

The Professor was in his office, just showing Luke a new puzzle (Because that's all he ever does in stories. Give puzzles. Teaches. Drinks tea. Solves mysteries. Has sex with older Luke or Clive or Emmy or half the characters.) as Emmy poured put tea for the three of them. The sudden shriek, while faint, was a surprise to all of them though.

"Professor, what was that?"

"I'm not quite sure, my boy." Professor Layton began, adjusting his hat as he looked out the window. "But the person is likely somewhere on campus. Perhaps we should go out and check to make sure no one is hurt." Emmy nodded as she put the tea cups back next to the kettle.

"I'll just put this tea back and make a new batch when we get back."

"Then again we can just wait until after tea. Or bring the teacups with us."

In St. Mystere...

Sweet, innocent Flora was hiding up in her cottage on top of a tower that in reality would not pass Health and Safety Inspections. Sadly, in the world of fantasy endangerment of people in such ways (Especially with teenagers and children; more so if they are the main characters) is pretty much alright with everyone. But Flora was hiding there anyone. Everyone in town had malfunctioned after the last heavy rain shower and were currently stalking the streets in a zombie-like fashion. All of them hissing "puzzles" or "riddles" or in one case "solve this God damn sliding puzzle." Naturally Bruno was overwhelmed and had to solve each puzzle of the robots to get to them but all of these puzzles were worth eighty picarats, and the wifi in the area was terrible so looking up a guide was out of the question.

Flora of course hid in the tower since she didn't do any puzzle solving until Unwound/Lost Future. So naturally she was somewhat bored as she sat in there alone.

But the shrieking sound that suddenly came made her curious. Maybe it was Lady Dahlia? She had been trying her hand at opera lately. Though she wasn't very good at in in the young girl's opinion. She was sure that was one of the reasons Claudia ran away so often.

In whatever the hell Targent HQ is...

Bronev was having his weekly treat. A nice, hot bubble bath with Celine Dion playing in the backround, reading 'Fifty Shades of Grey' and a glass of fine wine nearby next to a box of Belgium chocolate. His pet ferret was in pet bath close by, with a pink shower cap on. The bath was also a bubble bath, but a pet version. Bronev was also idly pushing about a rubber ducky with his toes that he had named Commander Ducky.

"I don't see why this has so much hate, Antonio." Bronev casually commented to the closest thing he had to a friend these days. Obviously, Antonio didn't respond. "It doesn't seem like 'mother porn' to me. Granted it's not the best story but I swear if my wife was still alive I would see if we could-."

But like the other, more liked people before, Bronev was cut off as he heard an incredibly high-pitched wail from nowhere. Bronev looked taken back at first, then seemed to walk down memory lane.

"Ah... I remember when Theodore gave a scream like that after he walked in on me and Rachel. We never did see the whites of his eyes ever again. Or his pupils either now that I think about it."

Back with our heroine and closest-thing-to-a-hero...

Elaine and Descole looked mildly in shock as Anton finished his wail. They had no idea a man could scream so loud and effeminately.

"I think we should go." Elaine whispered to Descole, who scowled in return.

"Really? And here I thought we were going to have an orgy!"

"My face..." Anton whimpered, looking up at Descole with a hurt expression. "My beautiful face... You RUINED it! I thought we had something!"

"I-." But Descole was cut off as he ducked down to avoid a chair Anton threw towards him.

"I HATE you! Get out of my castle!" Anton then turned around to run away, weeping into his hands leaving Elaine, Descole and Nigel alone in the room.

"... You heard him, leave." Nigel spoke with little care as he too soon left the room.

"... Are we going to loot this place, Descole?"

"Grab what you can see on our way out. I don't want to encounter that pansy again."


	11. New Surroundings

When Elaine once again found herself awake, there was a great contrast to compare. While previously it was dark and cold with some sounds of trotting horses and turning wheels, there was some light in the room coming from the window that was not too far from the bed Elaine found herself in. Well, Elaine noticed the light when she did dare to open her eyes fully, thankful to find herself alone in the room she was. The room was warm too, making Elaine glad she was dumped in a basement or attic or something along those lines. She rubbed her now free wrists a couple times before stepping out onto the carpeted floor to regain her thoughts.

The bed itself was four poster with emerald green sheets and made with a dark wood, and facing the bed from the opposite side of the room was an open door that led into an en suite bathroom. There was a bit of around the room such as a desk with a few books resting on it, a dresser and vanity table not too far from each other and a loveseat that seemed Victorian in style near the tall window that had a window balcony just outside it, big enough for two people to stand by side on it if they didn't mind having to push up together.

That's where Elaine went to first. She tried to open the window but it was locked. Not surprising really, and no doubt that the key was nowhere in the room. Elaine frowned as she thought over what to do now. There was another door in the room, likely leading into the hall. It was likely locked like the window, but that didn't mean she couldn't try it at least.

That didn't stop Elaine's hand shaking just a little though as she reached for the knob. She didn't know what was behind the door and given her current circumstances, she was likely to meet someone to call foe outside the door. But she ignored that twinge of fear and gently pulled at the door. Seeing it pull open with ease was a bit of a shock but Elaine didn't open further then a crack at first before glancing outside at what she could. So far, she didn't see anyone so she opened it a little wider and looked out. She had been right to assume it was a hall (Naturally lit by the day light) and glanced around. There was still no one to be seen.

Elaine silently shut the door again and thought her options over. It was daytime so there was likely someone to be up. Could she actually risk meeting someone, maybe even bumping into Descole? However, to stay in this room would do nothing and someone was bound to come here sooner or later and that would do no good.

Elaine went to the window again to try and see what sort of area she was in. It seemed to be a country side, and with the amount of trees Elaine could see it was likely somewhere isolated. Not that that would be a surprise really. It did however made Elaine realise that even if she got out of the house, any chance of rescue and finding someone who could help was quickly depleting now. Going through the woods themselves just seemed like a poor decision since she didn't know where she was and it was likely Elaine would only end up dying there.

Okay, assuming the Frenchwoman got out, Elaine would just have to stick to the road, and hide behind bushes or trees if she had to. Not a plan she was very happy with, but a plan none the less.

With nothing in the room suitable enough to use as a weapon, even for defense, Elaine was forced to leave the room empty handed and only having to depend on her own physical skills if the time called for it.

The hallway seemed a little empty except for the rich looking paintings and occasional piece of furniture. Elaine wondered briefly if the paintings were bought or stolen but that didn't really matter now. A bit of a shame though. She did spot some possible antiques the her archaeologist side would have liked to look a little more at them.

The house itself wasn't as big as Elaine first suspected either, at least not as big as a mansion, as she soon found the stairs leading down to the entrance hall. Elaine's heart nearly leaped from her chest but she calmed herself down and took off her shoes. It might give less of a chance of her making the stairs creak. Descending them, the plan seemed to work as there was no loud creaking. Either that or she was more careful then she thought herself to be.

After the final step, she quickly put her shoes on and made her way to the front door. Hand already outstretched to grab the handle.

"I was wondering if you would ever get up." The bored sounding voice shuck Elaine and she turned to her right. Through the archway into what was probably meant to be the parlor, and sitting in a armchair near a piano as he read through a book was Descole.

"I wasn't even a hundred percent certain if you would be brave enough to leave your room at all." Descole went on. "I probably would have let you stay there all day, and let you starve until tomorrow."

"You expected me to go down this way?" Elaine questioned calmly. No point not speaking a single word.

"I locked your window before I left your room and had Raymond lock all the others on the second floor, on the off chance you would consider risking injury by jumping out." Raymond? Since the house was so quiet and there seemed to be nearly no one else present, Elaine assumed that was the name of the Scottish man Elaine heard while she was in the cart the previous night.

"So what now?" Elaine questioned, folding her arms as she glanced back towards the front doors. She heavily considered if she could throw them open and run out fast enough before Descole could catch her. But the fact he had managed to catch her before when she attempted to run made that thought rot.

"You can consider this a day of rest." Descole looked up at Elaine finally. "I have some documents I've been meaning to get translated for some time now. So I think you can already figure out what your task will be."

"Do you 'onestly believe I'm going to go along with your nonsense?" Elaine sneered, standing a little straighter now. Descole gave a frustrated sigh as he closed his book.

"To be truthful, I did suspect you would say no first. You do have a hotheaded tendency at times." Descole gave a smirk at Elaine's incredulous look. "So I think it's best to phrase what it is I want in a way you should be able to understand, Hawthorne." Descole stood up and while a part of her wanted to step back, Elaine stood her ground. Even when he stepped towards her and stopped only when he was within arms reach.

"You do not have a choice, whatsoever." Descole stated simply. "You will translate for me, and you will give me the proper translation, and no hoax of any kind."

"You don't 'ave anything to make me do that!" Elaine pointed out. If she wasn't feeling frustrated, she possibly would have been smirking to herself as she felt some triumph there.

"True, but as I said, there is no choice for you in the matter. You will do as I say." Descole then took a quick stride and gripped some of Elaine's hair at the roots, causing her a discomfort as she forced herself not to voice her pain. "And I think we have established already that things do tend to go my way most of the time."

"Not when it comes to actually finding something." This was met with a sharp tug. This time, an "AH!" left her lips, causing the masked man to smirk a little.

"You really should learn when to just simply not speak. You never know what may happen." Elaine was then pushed back by Descole with enough force for her back to hit the front doors. Descole himself went back to the parlor room but spoke out,

"You're welcome to look around my home so long as you do not enter my room or office. You've already missed breakfast but it shouldn't be too long until lunch." Elaine pursed her lips together. Escape would have to wait. If she could look around the house, she would do just that. She may be able to find something of use to her. If not, then at least she could have a better idea of her current accommodation and maybe work on a escape plan from there. So without say another word she left.

She did look around the house a bit more. Elaine came to the conclusion that the house was Victorian in style judging from details here and there. Whether it was actually built in that era though, was something Elaine was not certain of. There were three floors altogether, not including the attic which seemed empty except for a few boxes and cobwebs. The rest of the rooms were some guest bedrooms. She found two locked doors and assumed that they were Descole's office and bedroom. Descole probably didn't trust her curiosity. She found a small library though that did have some comfortable seating near a fireplace. There was another bedroom she found that was a bit smaller then the others and seemed used. It was probably that Raymond man's bedroom so she quickly shut the door and continued on.

It wasn't too long until Elaine found herself back in her own assigned room, sitting at the desk with one hand hold her chin as she drummed the fingers of her other on the desk surface. She didn't find anything that might help her and while she did have at least the basic structure of the house in her mind, she doubted it would be actually useful. Well, it might. But not now.

_Knock, knock._

The knock at her door startled the brunette. She looked to her door. Feeling a bit tentative at first, Elaine eventually called out,

"'Ello?"

"I'm here to give you your lunch, miss. The Master felt you wouldn't come down to join him." Elaine raised an eyebrow to herself as she heard the Scottish accent clearly. Possibly Raymond. It was true she had planned to ignore her growling stomach and just stay here until something came to mind, but had her strong, strong dislike (to put it nicely) of Descole really been so obvious Descole was able to predict her move? That wouldn't do. Elaine didn't like the idea of being obvious. But a lunch was a lunch and she was wondering who exactly Raymond was, so she got up and went to open her door.

The servant standing outside was a man shorter then herself, and older with his brown hair and beard already greying from age which slightly contrasted against his red suit. He was carrying a silver tray with what Elaine recognised as salmon cakes, along with a cup of tea. The smell of it was already reminding Elaine of her hunger painfully.

"Merci, Monsieur...?" Elaine trailed off as she took the tray from the man.

"Raymond, miss." He answered, giving a small bow of his head before he left. Well, at least Elaine was right to guess that the Scottish man and Raymond were the same. She brought the tray inside and placed it on her desk. She briefly considered not eating at all, but decided against it and grabbed the knife and fork that came with it and ate. To not do so just seemed more of an insult towards Raymond then Descole and she didn't have a reason to be bitter towards the older man.

Not now anyway.

* * *

**OMAKE THEATRE! Where Layton characters are chibi-fied!**

* * *

**Super Sexy Duke Herzen**

**A Parody of Psy's 'Gentleman**

**Featuring Anton, Descole, Elaine as singers and mentions of Don Paolo and Clive**

(Anton skips happily through fashion department with Descole, Elaine, Don Paolo and Clive behind him. Those four looking miserable)

Anton: _Time to go shopping,_

_For something that looks fabulous._

_Time to go shopping,_

_Even though I already am._

_Time to go shopping,_

_I'm the Duke and I'm the fanciest._

_Time to go shopping,_

_You bitches know it is true._

_I'm the first fashionista! _

(Anton begins dancing, and shaking his booty)

_I have the best fashion around,_

_Fashionista!_

_The clue is in my clothing,_

_Fashionista!_

_Don't deny it, it is true you know,_

_Fashionista!_

_Damn girl! You so freaking sexy! _

(Anton looks at himself in mirror and attempts to make out with his reflection until the other pull him away)

_I-I-I I'm the, I-I-I I'm the, I-I-I I'm the Super Sexy Duke Herzen._

_I'm the. I'm the. I'm the Super Sexy Duke Herzen._

_I'm the. I'm the. I'm the Super Sexy Duke Herzen._

_I give great advice!_

_"Descole, you need a new colour." _

(Anton points to Descole who scowls)

_I give great advice!_

_"Clive, dump the blue and try on this vest." _

(Anton tugs Clive's jacket (Said young man looks uncomfortable) off and shoves a lilac coloured vest in his arms)

_I give great advice!_

_"Elaine, honey, try on this dress." _

(Anton shoves a baby blue summer dress in a confused Elaine's hands)

_I give great advice!_

_"Sorry, Paolo, you're beyond all hope!" ("HEY!")_

(Anton holds a hand up to Don Paolo before walking off, as Don Paolo looks incredibly insulted)

(Descole stands in front of Anton, looking pissed as hell)

Descole:_ Okay, just stop it!_

_You're not as great as you may think,_

_Just stop it!_

_You're the oldest person here, that is fact, _

(Anton begins to look insulted and upset)

_Just stop it!_

_I have more fangirls then you'll ever in life, _

(Descole holds up his cloak to show many girls including Elaine hiding under it)

_Just stop it!_

(Descole then begins looking smug)

_'Sides, blonde. I'm the definition of sex!_

(Now depressed, Anton dances with not as much passion as before)

Anton:_ I-I-I I'm a, I-I-I I'm a, I-I-I I'm a Super Depressed Sexy Duke. _

_I'm a. I'm a. I'm a __Super Depressed Sexy Duke._

_I'm a. I'm a. I'm a __Super Depressed Sexy Duke._

(Anton attempts to regain dignity)

_Gonna make you sweat! Gonna make you wet!_

_You know who I am!_

_Anton!_

_Gonna make you sweat! Gonna make you wet!_

_You know who I am!_

_Anton!_

_Anton!_

_Anton!_

_Anton!_

_I-I-I-I I'm a- _

(Elaine kicks Anton out of the way and steals the song and dance)

Elaine:_ Super Sexy Frenchwoman~._

_I'm a. I'm a. I'm a __Super Sexy Frenchwoman~._

_I'm a. I'm a. I'm a __Super Sexy Frenchwoman~._

_Super Sexy Frenchwoman~._

_Super Sexy Frenchwoman~._

* * *

**Hope the chapter was good and that that the song was as well :) When I was on the bus home from college for the holidays, I was listening to 'Gentleman' and the image of Anton singing his own version came to mind so it had to be done :3**


	12. Hunger

It seemed that Descole was fairly serious about wanting her to do some translations for him, because when she woke up the following day there were some aged papers on her desk, some of which were a bit worn around the edges. An notebook with empty pages opened next to them with two, black pens. The writings on them were obviously Azran and looking through the first page, they didn't seem too challenging for her skill. Some of the glyphs might require a little more thinking but unless she came across a word she had never seen before there shouldn't be anything she couldn't translate.

However, if this was just for Descole then why should she do it? Elaine just slapped the paper she was holding back down on the desk and went back to bed. The only thing that kept her from just simply ripping the pages up was simply because they could have something fascinating in them, something of great importance. To destroy them would be a crime against her field of work! Not to mention if she found a way to escape she planned to take those documents with her. Might as well have something to make up for this entire farce.

There was also the fact that... Well Elaine wouldn't admit it out loud or even to herself, but there was a part of her that was a little uneasy about Descole. She wouldn't like to use the words 'scared' or 'frightened'. Ignoring those words made it easier to try and stand up to Descole. She would have to if she was going to survive here before escape came her way.

It was when Elaine had just pulled the bed sheets over her that something occurred to her. How did those sheets get on her desk to begin with? Thinking on it a little more, Elaine mentally cursed herself for not thinking of locking her door and quickly got out to lock it before returning to the comfort of the mattress and bed sheets, to make another trip to dream land. Possibly the only place she could find peace until she could return to her life.

Thinking it over some more, she may not even be the one who has to rescue herself. Maybe if she was lucky, the Tritons' might notice and go to the excavation site back at Misthallery. If not, then surely her family and work colleagues were bound to notice sooner and later and an investigation would be started. They would probably look into Descole as a suspect. Elaine would be surprised if it turned out they didn't.

But those thoughts halted when she heard a click at her door. Was it unlocked? But how? She pressed the lock in, didn't she? But then again, the idea that there would still be a key to the door had never crossed her mind until now so it made Elaine frustrated with herself for not considering that possibility. It certainly explained how those papers got on her desk.

"Not starting work yet, Hawthorne?" Elaine shut her eyes tightly as she heard Descole's voice, and refused to turn over to face him. Maybe if she stayed still long enough and didn't acknowledge him he might go away, thinking she was sleeping still.

Or would he just force her awake? Both were possible though Elaine had to admit that the later seemed more likely.

This was proven when she felt Descole's hand grip her shoulder, his fingers digging in almost painfully, before forcing her onto her back to look up at him. He seemed disgruntled from what Elaine could tell from his mouth.

"Ah, good. You are awake."

"I'm not working." Elaine said quickly. Might as well say it while she could. Descole didn't say anything at first. Whether that was good or bad would be a question for some, but Elaine was more inclined to lean towards the later. This was an idea proven true when Descole's grip left from her shoulder to the front of her clothes and tugged her up sharply before looking at her directly in the eye.

"It's either translate, or hunger. You decide." He growled. Elaine seemed hesitant for a moment. Her lower lip trembling just a bit. But she already had the words in her mind set.

"I said, 'I'm not working'." Elaine repeated herself, her muscles tensing in preparation for whatever Descole may decide to do. Surprisingly though, he just let go of Elaine, causing the Frenchwoman to fall back on the bed only to push herself up as Descole took his leave.

"I expect those translations shoved under the door outside the hall. Expect no meal until then." Descole all but slammed the door shut, making Elaine wince a bit before the sound of the door locking from the outside was heard.

Elaine gave a worried frown, already second guessing her decision. How long would she actually survive without food? Considering she had a fairly slim figure, her worry could only grow as she hardly wanted to die feeling what were bound to be tortuous starvation pains.

But then she tried to reason with herself. Descole himself said she was of some value to him, yes? So, surely he wouldn't let her die. If Elaine could just hold out for maybe a week, maybe two weeks even, Descole will cave in first. It was a gamble but it's not like all gambling bets were doomed to fail from the start. It just depended on how the dice rolled. Who knows? Perhaps Descole was just trying to scare her into doing the translations? It did seem like something her would do when she thought about it. He didn't let Brenda Triton or Doland Noble starve, so why let her?

While Elaine did get out of her bed, she didn't even give the papers a second look. She just paced around the room, thinking and thinking. Either or possible plans to leave or trying to picture stories she could remember in her head, like a metal cinema. She even read from one of the books provided in the room to alleviate boredom.

Elaine wasn't surprised when there was no food for the rest of the day. She been expecting that and ignored the growls of her stomach. The second day she figured would be the same as well, and she suspected the third as well.

But by the fourth day Elaine was beginning to feel concern, as hunger pains were unable to be ignored. She tried to imagine herself eating food, and trying to convince her mind she was actually eating. The mind was a powerful tool and while it wouldn't actually fill her empty stomach it did take her mind off of it for a while.

By the fifth day, Elaine had moments where she would feel dizzy. She felt thankful that she had access to water from her en suite sink. She possibly would have been in a worser state if not for that. How much worser she couldn't say, but it could have been.

Elaine began to wonder if Descole was some sort of sadist by the sixth day. From what Elaine knew of his fight with Loosha, he seemed to fairly enjoy himself. Though killing Loosha may not have been his exact intention. Elaine only told herself that because she had been an unconscious hostage then and with information coming from then panicking people, it would just seemed biased to assume Descole was truly a sadist. Maybe he had at the very least some sadistic tendencies, or just simply liked being in control and having people under his thumb and going along with puppet strings held by him.

But at the end of the day, Elaine just scoffed at all of it. There was no point trying to figure out such things about Descole. Not now anyway.

The following day, Elaine started to notice that the paper in the notebook started to look good. That was when Elaine allowed herself to once again worry about whether letting herself starve was actually worth it at all. The dizzy spells only got worse as the hunger pains and if this went on she would hardly have any strength to do anything.

On the eight day, Elaine just couldn't take it. It was bitter, rotten even. But Descole won this little battle. He wanted those damn translations and nothing was going to change his mind.

If she was wasn't so hard headed and proud, even with the small blow this entire week had on her pride, she may have whimpered just a bit as she practically crawled out of bed the next morning, lightly stumbling to the desk and sat down. Picking up a pen and looking at the first sheet, she began translating what she could get through her head, even if her thoughts right now were far from linear. She wanted to cringe slightly at how her normally small, neat cursive writing looked a little sloppy now. A result of her practical hunger strike.

Hearing her door unlock, she didn't bother looking up. She imagined he was smirking. Looking like pretentious, triumphant wolf that just cornered a defenseless rabbit before ripping it's throat out. She didn't want to hear the gloating, the self praise.

But she heard something heavy placed on the table and glanced to her side. A plain, wooden tray with a plate filled with sliced bread rolls and a small plate with butter and butter knife, along with a cup of tea. For a second she thought it was in fact Raymond who placed the food but looking up she saw a scowling Descole.

"I can't tell whether to applaud your tenacity or slap you for your stubborn stupidity." He muttered. "I am glad to see though that you are finally letting your current role sink in." Elaine looked back at the food, feeling very tentative. This felt more like a draw if anything. If she had waited just a few minutes longer, perhaps this could have been a victory towards her. However, he came anyway, which somewhat softened the blow. Maybe it was for the best anyway. What could have came after starvation would certainly not have been pleasant.

"Eat." Descole told Elaine sharply. She had been too lost in her thoughts to actually eat. Swallowing, Elaine took a slice and took a big bite from it. Savoring the soft and still slightly warm texture in her mouth before letting it down her throat. She could have sworn she felt it drop to the very bottom of her stomach. Descole took the notebook Elaine had been using and looked at it.

"... Finish your breakfast, then continue." He told her simply as he put it back on the desk. "I'll send Raymond up with lunch later."

"Why did you bring up breakfast then?" Elaine questioned after finishing the slice she had taken. It felt like a risky question, but it just slipped out.

"He was busy with another errand." Descole replied, now sounding bored. He then turned around to leave. Elaine didn't say another word and took a sip of her tea before buttering her next slice. Descole however had one last thing to say before leaving.

"Don't try to starve yourself again, Hawthorne. I want a Azran glyph translator, not a dead woman in my house."

* * *

**OMAKE THEATRE! Where Layton characters are chibi-fied!**

* * *

"Descole-kun! Descole-kun!"

Descole sighed as he heard Elaine add 'kun' to his name. He regretted letting her watch those darn Japanese animes and mangas. With their Japanese words, cutesy designs, fucking twisted deaths, nice characters, psycho characters, abnormally large breasts-"

"DESCOLE-KUN!"

"WHAT?!" Descole snapped looking at Elaine, but frowned when he saw her holding giant, white eagle wings. His kidnappee smiled cheerfully though.

"I found these pretty wings, and with them I shall fly!"

"... Elaine, those are for Randall when we get to Miracle Mask." Descole bluntly told her. "Put them back where you found them."

"Non! I'm going to put them on, and fly! I'll migrate to Paris for the summer! Like a beautiful swan!"

Naturally, this confused Descole, who's frown only deepened.

"... Migrate to Paris... Like a... Beautiful, swan?"

"Yes! Like a fucking swan!" Elaine snapped as she put the wings on her back and faced the window of the study that was suddenly open. Keep in mind, they were on the third floor. Just then, Raymond entered carrying the tea tray.

"Ah, is Ms. Hawthorne leaving now?" Raymond sounded like this was normal. Because of this, Descole wondered briefly if it was a good idea to break Raymond out of that old persons' home in exchange for being his butler. He couldn't remember the last time he gave the older man his pills.

"R-Raymond, Hawthorne... You don't actually believe she can-"

"I BELIEVE I CAN FLY!" Elaine began singing high, and out of tune as she ran towards the window. "I BELIEVE I CAN TOUCH THE SKY! I THINK ABOUT IT EVERY NIGHT AND DAY!"

"HAWTHORNE YOU CRAZY FRENCH BITCH, STOP!" Descole yelled, running after the clearly insane woman as she got to the window and jumped out.

"SPREAD MY WINGS AND FLY AWAY!"

Descole had been ready to hear the screams of upcoming death. The sound of body becoming a rag doll against the ground with blood coming out of her.

Instead, much to either his shock or horror, he saw the wings were flapping. Elaine Hawthorne was ACTUALLY flying!

"Wh-what...? How...?" Descole stammered. He was nearly tempted to take his mask off to make sure his eyes weren't fooling him. "This isn't possible. This defies everything-"

"I might as well go out and stretch my arms." Raymond interrupted, suddenly on the windowsill with his arms outstretched.

"RAYMOND, NO! YOU DON'T HAVE WINGS!" Descole yelled before Raymond jumped out, flapping his hands. Again, to Descole's shock, he saw that Raymond too was flying. Tweeting like a bird, Scottish one in this case, and flying around like he just didn't care. But Descole returned his attention to Hawthorne. It seemed the wings might have been heavier then they looked because Elaine wasn't moving too fast. She wasn't falling to the ground or anything. She just wasn't escaping fast enough.

Hesitant, Descole stood on the ledge and gripped the edges of his fancy cloak and took a deep breath.

"I... I believe I can fly. I believe I can touch the sky. I think about it every night and day." Descole began flapping his cloak like wings. "Spread my wings, and FLY AWAY!"

Descole took his leap of fate. Much to his shock, he was actually flying. Not falling to the ground whatsoever. He looked back up at Hawthorne and laughed.

"HAHAHA! YOU WON'T ESCAPE FROM ME NOW, HAWTHORNE!" Descole began laughing as he began flying after Elaine. However, the weight of his cloak meant he was just as slow as Elaine.

Sometime later in London...

Professor Hershel Layton was in one of his classes, going over some Greek mythology with his students.

"Sir?" One student questioned. "You know that story, Icarus and Daedalus? The one where the boy flew too close to the sun?"

"Yes?"

"Do you think it be possible for something like that to happen in real life?" The Professor chuckled lightly as he shuck his head.

"Of course not. It's just a myth. A very creative one, but a myth none the less. Feathers would hardly hold up the weight of an average man." The student frowned before glancing out the window.

"Then, um... You may want to see this." The Professor walked over to the window his student was looking out of and started to question logic as he saw Elaine with white eagle wings going by with a laughing Descole flapping his cloak after her.

"... We-well... I... I suppose, there's always a first for..."

Then Raymond flew by, still flapping his hands as he tweeted.

"... Class dismissed."

Professor Layton, for the first time ever, felt an urge to drink something other then tea for once.

Preferably alcohol filled.


	13. Some Translation

While it felt like a major loss on her side, Elaine did start translating those sheets she had been given. Though full of reluctance. She was actually surprised when Descole had actually given her food after roughly a week of eating nothing at all. To be fair though, he probably wasn't expecting her to willingly starve herself. Even if Elaine had caved in herself around the same time. But the message from the incident was embedded in her mind. Descole was willing to do some degree of harm towards her if her felt it necessary. Outright refusing looked less appealing then it had in the beginning. Unless she was sure she could get away with it, she couldn't ignore her work.

She had moments of suddenly feeling thankful she had kept some degree of guard up when they first met and didn't divulge too much into her personal life. The last thing she wanted was her parents, brother and cousin threatened by her masked captor. The thought alone made her want to shiver a little. She could already imagine them being locked in a basement or attic...

No. Elaine wouldn't think about it. Descole as far as she knew, had no clue of her family and as such had no form of blackmail in the form of family to use against her. Or in general really since as far as Elaine could recall, she had never done anything illegal or cost her dearly.

She would just have to go along with Descole's demands until something came up. Then, she could finally return to her family and work.

Possibly with documents she 'acquired' through Descole as a donation to the London Museum. Without his knowledge, or permission really. But in all fairness, he had technically tried or at least intended to steal her work for the Golden Garden so really it would be justifiable on her part. She was the victim here so she was sure she would have gotten away with it.

The documents themselves were interesting enough. She supposed that was what made the whole thing lot easier on her. They seemed to mostly describe an island with a 'City of Harmony'. It shouldn't be surprising to say that it immediately caught Elaine's attention as she went through all myths and legends relating to Azran in her mind, and one came to mind. The Lost City of Ambrosia.

Elaine licked her slightly dry lips as she briefly thought over what to with that thought. If she put that note down, it might make Descole happy with her work and if he was, it might mean she could leave sooner then she would if she could not escape or could note be rescued. But Elaine smirked to herself. Why she should she make the note? Descole just wanted translations, yes? Well ideas and theories don't count, do they? At least, not in this special case. True, it was a bit of a long shot Descole wouldn't know of Ambrosia. He may already know, or have a book with some sort of mention in it. But if she could hold something back, then why not try?

It was almost dinner by the time she finished the last of the pages she was given. Candlelight being her only light source. Elaine gently ripped her translations out of the notebook she had been using and shoved them under the door into the hall. Just gently enough not to tear them. As for the documents... Well, Elaine didn't hesitate in folding them up as small as she could and tucking them into her bra. She was sure as long as Descole had what he wanted, he would care so much for the original copies.

She grabbed one of the books off the desk and began to read. It wasn't really that great of a book to be completely honest. The main character was incredibly dull yet she was the most sought after and attempted suicide over the 'loss of her true love', when he left for another country, breaking her heart. Apparently. It just made Elaine want to snort. What happened to romance novels? They were a lot better when she was a teenager. Granted, she could hardly see herself dating some sort of Heathcliff, but didn't change anything.

God she missed being a teenager. Life was simpler back then. It was a lot more fun too. Parties, having to defend her boyfriends when her older brother would speak only in French around them and insult them, sneaking out and not getting caught after curfew. Well, she was caught by her father sometimes. But Elaine was usually let off easily by him. Maybe it was because she had seldom sneaked out or because her dad was a big softy towards her. Over protective at times, yes, but he was still a good father who taught her right from wrong along with her mother.

Hearing footsteps outside, though just barely, made Elaine look up at the door. The footsteps stopped and Elaine waited to see what would happen. Judging by the time it took for the footsteps to leave, it had been Descole. Likely skimming over the pages just to make sure she had done her work correctly. Waiting another minute or two, Elaine shut the book she had been looking at and stretched her arms before she got out to look out the window. While a quiet country side was more peaceful then the city, Elaine still missed seeing the lights of buildings outside her window. It was strangely relaxing to her. Gave a sense that she wasn't really alone in her Georgian apartment in London.

Hearing a knock at her door, Elaine went to answer to see Raymond carrying tonights' dinner; cooked salmon with a glass of white wine, mildly surprising Elaine since this was the first time since she got here that she got a glass of wine with dinner.

"The Master seemed happy with your work, miss." Raymond said. Elaine wondered if the question showed on her face, if it was a coincidence her said it or if the old butler may have some sort of psychic power.

"Right then." Elaine murmured as she took the tray from Raymond. "Anything I should probably know?"

"Nothing I can think of, miss."

"Alright then." Elaine coughed in an awkward manner. "Um... merci." Elaine murmured, shutting the door just as Raymond was turning to leave. Elaine thought over the idea of a happy Descole. Earlier, she had thought a happy Descole may be good for her. However, thinking it over now she began to wonder if a happy Descole was actually bad for everyone else. That theory was only supported by the other times she recalled seeing him happy. Usually it had happened when something negative occurred.

But there was nothing Elaine could really do. As much as the Frenchwoman hated to say it, she was actually in a powerless position right now. She didn't risk anything by adding or removing something from the text, it seemed a bit dangerous for her to do that to Descole. She would have to wait until a chance came. A chance where she could lie but in a subtle way that could not be noticed. Maybe if she noticed something Descole did not, she could try and pass on some sort of clue to Professor Layton if a chance came when she could do so. After all, Descole had some sort of grudge against the Professor so it would be some form of defiance against him.

That was one of the more pleasant thoughts she had as she sat at her desk, dinning on tasty fish and fine, sweet wine. A chance would come to her soon enough, surely.

A chance came to Descole when she met him, didn't it?


	14. The Seal

Elaine was unsure how to react when Descole came into her room. Especially with the look on his face... Well, mouth. He seemed pleased but trying to hide it. She guessed it had to do with her translations. Had they actually been useful to him? If so, how? Having looked over the original copies again (said copies which she hid back in her bra), she could remember some details off the top of her head. They mainly described an island where the 'City of Harmony', Ambrosia, could be. Of course, she didn't give the name of the place she figured it to be referring to. Descole only wanted translations, so that's all he would get. The island itself sounded like it would be a warm place, but not necessarily tropical. That could narrow down the possible locations a bit depending on the region, but that didn't mean...

Elaine's thoughts trailed off, a possibility coming to mind. Descole had been gone for a long time. Nearly two months actually, according to Raymond when she last asked him since he had stayed here. Apparently Descole was on some sort of expedition of sorts. One could argue it would have been a perfect time to escape, but why exactly would Descole leave Raymond here with her? Descole likely had strong trust in his butler and Raymond must have been very loyal to Descole. As such, to make an escape attempt with even just the elderly man here felt risky. Not to mention he would just inform his master, who could just very well kidnap her again for all she knew. It was a disturbing thought, but it felt realistic in a way.

"Did you miss me, Hawthorne?" Descole gave a sardonic smile and Elaine just glared back. The answer was quite obvious. She didn't care he was gone. It just meant she didn't have to put up with him and his attitude.

"Oui. I missed you and your 'wonderful' company." Elaine muttered.

"Now, now Hawthorne. No need to sound so bitter. After all, I think you could consider today a day to be joyful for." Elaine raised an eyebrow.

"Joyful? What would your definition of that word be? It's bound to be something morbid coming from you."

"Must you be so cynical towards me? If I were you, I would be happy." Descole lips turned to a smirk. "After all, you just helped me find the lost island of Ambrosia."

Elaine's scowl dropped, and turned to a frown of confusion. Did... Did she hear him right? Had her notes actually led to the discovery of an island, where the City of Ambrosia once stood?

"W-what?"

"Yes, your translations describing the island and it's close by relatives actually narrowed down all the possible locations. Not too far from us in truth. Some hours boat journey to it."

"And what makes you so certain it's Ambrosia?" Elaine questioned. Ready to prod at any possible problems with this supposed discovery. How can he say he found a place without proof? But Descole kept the smirk he had and took a photograph out of his pocket and placed it on the desk. Elaine picked it up and saw a photo of a rock with a seal engraved on it. Elaine could just make out some glyphs inside it enough to tell what it was.

"The Seal of Ambrosia." Descole declared, as Elaine's jaw lightly dropped. "And with it, the clue to rising the lost city."

"Rising?" Elaine questioned, looking back up to Descole.

"The ruins are underneath. But once we crack this code, Ambrosia will be closer to being mine."

Now Elaine had mixed feelings. As an archaeologist, such a find would be a grand discovery. A chance to learn more of the Azran culture if possible and perhaps even learn more of the myth of the Elixer of Life, that had been created in an attempt to save the island's queen before she died. All of that, Elaine had no problems with. However, that's when Descole came in. To start things off simply, while he did acknowledge her as a necessity to cracking the code, he was still going to take all the credit. Then there was the likely possibility that whatever was needed to rise Ambrosia (Assuming Descole was telling the truth. For once) was going be similar in some shape or form to his search of the Golden Garden.

"So, you want me to translate what's in the seal?" Elaine wasn't so much asking, but stating with a questioning tone as she looked back to the picture.

"Obviously. You'll have to come anyway in case there is anything else there you can-."

"Come?" Elaine interrupted, sharply looking back at the slightly irritated man. "You're actually taking me to Ambrosia?"

"Of course." Descole scoffed. "What's the point of having you here if I don't put you to good use?"

'Oh, 'ow I feel loved.' Elaine though to herself, rolling her eyes before asking aloud, "So, when exactly are we going?"

"Tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?"

"Don't begin acting like a parrot." Elaine gritted her teeth at the small insult but decided to ask her more important question. "So, apart from the seal, I may be doing some translations at Ambrosia?"

"Possible."

"So... After that then, will you let me go?" Elaine asked. Not showing any sign of hesitance or intimidation. Descole gave a small sneer however, and that alone stabbed Elaine's question before he answered.

"No, I will not. And I wouldn't bother asking again. The results might... not be the one you're hoping for." Elaine gritted her teeth. That was all she did. Maybe it had been a pointless question to ask, but at least no one could say Elaine never tried.

"Oh, and Hawthorne?" Descole held his hand out in an expecting manner. "I figured you just simply forgot, but I would like those original text documents back. Now."

The actual journey itself the next day was dull. The only way Descole would let her come with being unconscious was if she wore a blindfold the entire trip. It felt completely ridiculous but Elaine could see reason for it. The less she knew of where she was, the better. Better for Descole that is. With her eyes covered, she couldn't look at the scenery to pass the time and she certainly had no intentions of talking to Descole during the cart ride to wherever they were heading. Descole didn't seem to care though. Elaine would have guessed he preferred it that way. Though, one good aspect of being blindfolded though was that she could pretend for a while she was somewhere else. Sleeping in her nice warm bed. Watching a horror film. Remembering some songs she could remember at least a few lyrics of.

Elaine wasn't sure how long it had been since they left Descole's home. It was around midday if she was correct in remembering. But they did eventually stop. Elaine fought against the urge to just snatch her blindfold off to see where she was. But if she saw something she really wasn't suppose to see, Descole would possibly do anything to keep her quiet, wouldn't he? He could keep her a prisoner forever, or worst kill her!

She nearly jumped when she felt a hand grab her's, and soon recognised it as Descole's.

"Here. I'll help you off." Elaine was hesitant, but she accepted the help of the cart anyway. She would have to depend on Descole to guide her until she got to their destination.

"Would you like me to come with you, Master?"

"No, we'll be fine. Just stay here. We shouldn't be too long." Elaine heard Descole respond to Raymond before he tugged her hand, signalling her to move. Elaine reluctantly walked next to Descole, her heart racing as it slowly started to sink in that she was actually putting some trust in Descole to not drown her in the water source she was beginning to hear or some other foul act. It was only when Descole told her to stop that she did. It was silent for a moment before Descole hesitantly let go of her hand. Elaine didn't dare run because she was too close to her captor to do so. The next sound seemed like someone stepping into a boat of some sort, before both her hands were grabbed.

"Step carefully. I don't want to end up in the water because of your own incompetence." Elaine muttered a slew of French but hesitantly moved her feet as careful as possible. Reluctantly listening to Descole where to move her feet until she was in the boat sitting down with her back towards the front of it. Feeling some of the material her hands touched, she guessed the boat was made of some kind of wood. She immediately guessed it to be a speed boat when she heard an engine being rived up.

"I didn't think you would be using a simple speed boat." Elaine mused. She heard a faint chuckle from Descole.

"Perhaps. But this is still part of the expedition. We won't need anything bigger. Not now at least."

"I'm guessing there aren't many people around." Elaine guessed. During the entire trip there was no sound of a living person. Maybe some birds, but besides them, nothing."

"And you would be correct." Descole confirmed. "This place is secluded enough for us not to be found."

"Good news for you then." Elaine commented in a dry tone, just as the engine began. She nearly fell foreword as they took off, and possibly would have had she not quickly stomped her feet to the ground to keep some sort of force. The boat trip felt a bit like the cart trip, only this time on water. Elaine wondered what time it was even, and felt some regret at having never had her watch on her at the time she was kidnapped.

But eventually, the boat hit some gently bump, having reached shore. Elaine swallowed and asked,

"So... Can I take the blindfold off now?" No sooner had the last word left her lip had Descole grabbed the thing off her face.

"There." Elaine blinked as her eyes readjusted to seeing colour once more and looked behind Descole (Who was already getting out of the boat) to the sky that, while still mostly blue, was beginning to gain a peachy colour over the horizon. Elaine would have questioned how long the entire trip took, but decided in reality it was a pointless question to ask now.

"Are you getting out, or will I be forced to drag you out myself?" Elaine quickly stood up and jumped onto the shore, her feet splashing in the edge of the tide coming in. Looking to where they had arrived, Elaine saw a vast, richly green forest merging with the beach edge where the faint sounds of birds could be heard crying out or singing their songs. It was a sight Elaine already felt appreciation for. Land untouched by modern humans.

"This way, Hawthorne." Elaine saw Descole walking down the beach and quickly went after him. Not like she had much of a choice on an island. The walk itself wasn't very far. The moment Descole saw what he was looking for, he grabbed Elaine's arm and dragged her over to a grey rock paled by the constant sun contact. The only darkened feature was of the engraving of the Seal of Ambrosia. A semi circle of shooting stars over a temple with two praying people, and below that a burning fire.

Elaine couldn't help but reach her hand out to touch it, tracing the markings and wonder what the person or persons who made the marking first had in mind, or thought.

"Can you translate it now?" Descole questioned, sounding a little anxious. Elaine bit her lip and murmured,

"Give me a moment."

Elaine looked it over, tracing her fingers as she slowly switched the ancient language, first to her mother-tongue French, and then English. That was how she always did it. It felt easier thinking of it first in a language she was more familiar with and then her secondary one. But it did become clear. So very clear.

"Well?" Descole questioned her, after what may have been twenty minutes. "Can you at least guess what it is?"

"... It's a poem." Elaine answered, before reading it out loud.

_'Beloved Queen, we sing to thee,_

_Our praise and woe, for our failure to make,_

_The Elixer on time._

_But as time goes by, we will wait, and wait, and wait._

_Only to rise as you return another life._

_Our signs of existence may be lost at one point,_

_Gathering dust or sunk in the sea._

_But your song, your blessed song,_

_Will show that we did once live._

_Song of the Stars, show your tears._

_Dance through the skies, leaving silver streaks._

_Song of the Sea, show your compassion._

_May all be given second chances, a chance to redeem.'_

"Well, there's bound to be an answer to this riddle." Descole murmured, now touching the seal himself. He seemed thoughtful as he looked at it, Elaine herself looking at the seal as she tried to hide her slight nervousness. "And you're certain that this is what it says? You're not lying?"

"It's what it says." Elaine murmured in response, not taking her eyes off the seal.

"... Song of the Sea... Stars... Music." Descole mused. "We might have to stay a bit longer. I might be able to figure it out now. And this gives you a chance to give a correct translation in case-."

"I'm not lying." spat Elaine. "I translated. Just like you wanted me to."

"... I'll trust you for now." Descole mumbled. "Just stay here with me, and don't try anything."

"Oui, oui." Elaine said with a noticeable false cheeriness before she dropped down to sit in the sand, pulling her knees up and hugging herself as she rested her chin on her knees. She would be blindfolded again sooner or later, so she may as well enjoy being outside again, and seeing the sky slowly change and the blue give way to orange. Appreciating the natural smells of outside.

Elaine glanced back to the seal, a smirk gracing her face. She hadn't lied about her translation. But she did hold something back. Maybe it would help, maybe it wouldn't. Maybe she would have to tell the truth sooner or later, willingly or not. But she had her chance and took it.

_'Song of the Sun, don't hide your face._

_Shine upon us a new day, and lead us foreword with smiles to bare.'_


	15. Song of the Stars

After the trip to Ambrosia, Elaine was happy enough that she didn't have to do much else. Descole was focused on trying to figure out the seal so with him occupied with that, Elaine could at least pretend she was comfortable in the house and that her life was still normal. Not bound to her room currently, she was able leave and walk around a bit. Even if she couldn't actually go outside.

However while Descole was usually in his study he did often occupy the library as well, and Elaine found it better to pretend everything was alright keeping some form of distance from him so Elaine usually spent her days reading in the parlor. Doing some light reading or pretending to read as she thought to herself of any possible plans. Ambrosia could be a possible escape for her if she was careful with her planning. Maybe some time during the night she could steal a boat? Granted she's never driven one before (if that was the right word to use for a boat), but she certainly couldn't just swim from an island to the mainland!

It felt late, but Elaine kept reading on. Just one more page and then bed. That was what she told herself. But maybe she should go now. There was a moment where she caught herself reading the same line again and again. And again and again. And again and again...

Did the Azrans really create an elixer to give immortality? That thought eventually came to Elaine's mind. It seemed far fetched in her opinion. After all, grim as it was, death was a necessity. It kept the world from becoming over populated. And who would want to live forever? It seemed more of a curse if anything. Living on, never dying. All friends and family dying and you never being able to see them again. While not the most religious of people, Elaine still believed in an afterlife. And with that thought in mind, an even more morbid one came to her.

If Descole never let her go, was the afterlife the only place she would be reunited with her family?

_Ping. Ping-Ping._

Elaine's eyes shot open as she awoke with a start. When did she fall asleep? She didn't think she was so tired that she would actually fall asleep. But what woke her up.

"Oh. So you're awake?" Elaine looked to the other side of the room where the piano was. Descole sat at it, sheet music up for him to read. That answered a question that had been drifting in Elaine's mind. Did Descole know how to play piano, or was the thing just for show?

"You woke me up." Elaine muttered, sitting up in the chair more as she had been slouching in it while sleeping. "I didn't realise you would decide to spontaneously play tonight."

"Well it isn't for pleasure at this time, but work." Elaine looked to the piano as she tried to think this through. The poem had mentioned two songs. Well, two as far as Descole knew. So music had to be involved. But Descole couldn't have had the sheet music, could he? Not in such a short time.

"And, 'ow exactly could playing the piano...?"

Descole took a photo that had been resting next to the sheet music up and held it up. Elaine stood up and walked over and looked at the photo of the seal.

"Er..."

"Hawthorne, what does the top of the seal look like to you?" Elaine took the photo into her own hand to take a closer look, tilting her head to the side to see the shapes she was possibly meant to see.

"Um... Shooting stars? In a, crescent moon shape? But, what does that have to do with-."

"Are you familiar with musical theory?" Descole interrupted, and Elaine shuck her head.

"'Onestly, non." Elaine admitted. "I never 'ad the patience to learn notes and keys and such."

"Yet you manage to retain patience for archaeology?"

"It's different!" Elaine countered quickly. Whether he cared or not, Descole didn't show. But he got to the point he was trying to make.

"Well, if you were familiar with such, you would know that those 'stars' are actually music notes. Notes for the Song of the Stars." Elaine looked back to the photo. Now that she thought of it, the streaks did look like a music stave, only curved downwards at either ends.

"And... Song of the Sea is 'ere too?" Elaine asked, as she noticed other markings that could be musical notes.

"Yes." Descole actually sounded a bit excited as he went on. "I thought it over, and I believe that both songs have be played to make Ambrosia rise! I'll need to design something to play as if it is an entire symphony, and I'll need someone to sing the Song of the Sea. But Ambrosia, will rise and be mine!" Elaine was wondering if this was how he acted a little before he came to Misthallery.

"And you Hawthorne, have the honour of being the first person to hear the Song of the Stars since it was forgotten by the ages." Elaine was a bit taken back by this. It actually sounded like Descole was doing something nice for her in a way.

"Wouldn't you be hearing it too though?"

"Obviously." Descole scoffed. "But I'll be the first the play it."

"I see. Well... Let's 'ear it then." Elaine said as she went to a seat closer to the piano to listen. Descole gave a small smile, before placing his fingers to the keys and began playing.

While the song was not long, it was still wonderful to hear. To appreciate. The high points of the music seemed to call up directly to the heavens, to the actual stars of the song's namesake. Perhaps the song was written in such a way to actually communicate to the Queen. To say how much her people adored her and wished her back in full health. But it was peaceful too. Something she found could ease a troubled mind. A mind like her's in a way.

Elaine was almost startled when the song came to it's end. Disappointed even. But out of politeness she gave a small clap, letting a tiny smile of her own slip on.

"Il était beau." Elaine murmured. Descole gave a small chuckle.

"Indeed." He mused. "I just have to find someone to sing Song of the Sea. That one person."

It was funny. Descole seemed... Happy. Pleased. Content. And not in ways that made Elaine want to spit on him. He actually seemed human. Human as her. Human as anyone. He was still just a man with ambitions. Dark ambitions in his hands but ambitions and dreams none the less. The room felt strangely peaceful. Very peaceful.

There are moments where suddenly things just come to mind. Things you're not proud of. That make you feel ill. Elaine had that moment when Song of the Sun came to mind. But it went away soon enough.

"Could... Could I 'ear it again?" Elaine asked. She wasn't going to get her hopes up in case he said no. But surprisingly, Descole nodded with another smile and repeated. Elaine smiled herself and closed her eyes and let the music wash over her.

Hopefully, it would drag away that sudden feeling of guilt in her stomach.

* * *

**So I was browsing YouTube, and I found this piece that I think would be a perfect theme for Elaine. Tell me what you think if you want to :)**

** watch?v=YeLPsKf-X8k**


	16. Lucy

Whatever Descole's exact plans in relation to Ambrosia were currently, Elaine had yet to find out. Whether that was good or bad was debatable, though with him gone for long amounts of time and only appearing in the house late every so often did lead to her believe that whatever he was doing was far from anything such as world peace. The last she even heard him in the house was this morning. She had just barely heard him walking in the halls before he left again. He probably forgot something and only went to get it back.

But she wasn't going to complain too much. In fact, it just led to her and Raymond talking now and then. While his loyalty to Descole was in no way questionable, Elaine surprisingly found him to be pleasant conversation. Besides, seeing as how she was likely going to be here a long, long time, she figured she thought she might as well see if it was possible for her to get along with the older man.

"So, if you don't mind me asking, 'ow long 'ave you been working for Monsieur Descole?" Elaine asked. They were in the kitchen, which while not large had enough space for at least two or three people to be in the room and not get in each other's way too much. It felt cheery with the pale yellow curtains patterned with sunflowers over the window letting the evening sunlight in, as and old jar rested on the window sill with some red poppies. Elaine was leaning against a counter holding a cup of tea while Raymond watered those poppies after having finished washing some pots.

"Many, many years now, miss."

"And is 'e always so...?" Elaine paused to think of the right word to try and describe the scientist. She wasn't sure how Raymond would react if she just out rightly insulted Descole.

"Abrasive? Assuming on occasion? Quick to anger?" Well, that took care of that worry.

"Oui." Elaine nodded. She was a bit surprised how Raymond said it as though it was normal. Then again, Raymond probably WAS use to it at this stage.

"While those points would be valid, he does have his moments." Raymond began. "I wouldn't say it's an excuse, and it's certainly not my place to give details, he has had his share of misfortunes in life."

Elaine didn't say anything though inwardly she questioned how much misfortune could make him do what he does? And now that she thought about it, she possibly would have to take Raymond's word with a grain of salt. The man was loyal to Descole after all. Plus there was always a possibility Descole may have told Raymond a lie or two. It could be possible, couldn't it? Though remembering some time ago when Descole played Song of the Stars, that did seem like one of those 'moments' Raymond mentioned. Descole still had some arrogance during which but that was besides the point.

Elaine didn't bother to question anything about these 'misfortunes'. Raymond already admitted it was not his place to tell and even if Descole and her could at times be civil to each other, there was a better chance of say... Hmm... Professor Layton going a nude beach, with the exception being if it was related to an investigation of course, then Descole actually going into details of his personal life. Hell, apart from the fact he was an arrogant prick, all Elaine really knew about him was that he was a scientist with an interest in archaeology and could play piano. And the later took nearly three months to find out. Elaine then changed the subject.

"So, does Descole tell you what he plans?"

"Usually miss. Though I can't tell you what it is he's planning exactly." Raymond put the small kettle he had used to water the poppies on the sink. "I should light the fireplaces now."

"Do you want help?" Elaine offered.

"No thank you. I'll be fine, miss." Raymond left after that. Leaving Elaine alone again. With nothing else to do, Elaine finished her tea and washed it out before she went upstairs with the intention of going back to her room. However, she noticed a door slightly opened and stopped when she recognised it as Descole's office. With the door opening in towards the room and Elaine not paying too much attention when she last went by to go down stairs, she hadn't noticed it was open. Remembering this morning, Descole did sound in a rush. He probably forgot to close and lock it properly.

Elaine bit her lip as she looked behind her. Common sense and logic deemed going into a room that Descole told her was strictly off limits along with his own room would be one of her more ill-advised ideas and plans. A bit like opening Pandora's Box in a way. Seeing how being caught in there would no doubt not end nicely.

On the other hand however, just as Pandora was, she was a bit curious now that the door was unlocked. If she didn't disturb anything, or make it painfully obvious she had been inside, there couldn't be much harm. It was unlocked and she would likely never get another chance ever again. Perhaps... Perhaps, she could at least glance inside real quickly at least. Then she would leave, and never enter again. She could promise that.

Looking over her shoulder once more, Elaine then hesitantly moved to the door. Somehow it became instantly ominous but Elaine just ignored it and looked down to see how much of a crack there was in the opening. Just so she would know how much to close the door when she left. She carefully opened the door and peered inside. Both right and left sides of the room were stuffed with books, with an object here and there such as a vase or miniature statue that gained some attention from Elaine out of archaeological reasons. A dark wooden desk, covered in papers and books, was pushed against the wall, under the window to give a view of the surroundings.

Elaine then noticed a book lying on the floor near the desk that seemed to have fallen off. Elaine figured she'd put it back up for Descole on the off chance he might accuse her of trespassing into the study, so without thinking she stepped inside and knelt down to pick the book up but stopped just as her finger tips brushed against it. What if this was some sort of trick Descole thought of? Thinking that if she were to go into his office, she would put the book somewhere or simply lift it up out of curiousity or something, and the fact that it would be misplaced alone would be evidence enough of her presence assuming Raymond didn't do it himself.

She cursed herself for being so stupid and moved to leave. She saw enough of the room to know what it looked like. That was all she needed. She moved back up and was going to leave. But her damn curiousity noticed a silver photo frame on the desk. She glanced over her shoulder to take a closer look at the photo.

There was a woman who seemed to have been a little younger then Elaine. At least at the time the photo was taken. She could have been the same age as her or older for all Elaine knew. She was sitting outside on a stone bench. Her hair was a blondish brown and a little wavey, a little longer then Elaine's too, while eyes were green and shinning brightly. She was smiling in content and had a hand on her stomach, where when Elaine looked closely enough, had a slight bump on it. Signalling pregnancy. But what confused Elaine more was that the woman seemed to completely adore whoever was taking the picture. So why did Descole have it?

At the bottom of the frame though, Elaine noticed an engraving.

_'Lucy S-'_

That was all Elaine could see before her arm was violently grabbed and was forced to turn around to face Descole. Elaine felt her heart drop into her stomach as she would have had to have been blind to not tell how angry Descole was. No. Even a blind person could have noticed. He was gritting his teeth hard and his free hand shook as if resisting the urge to do something she certainly did not want to be on the other end of. Even his grip was tighter then normal, and possibly close to cutting off circulation.

"What. Are. You. Doing. In. My. Office." He said it slowly, each word clearly separated. Elaine swallowed as she decided to tell a mixture of lie and truth.

"I-I-I." Elaine briefly paused to swallow and stop her stuttering. "I was walking by and your door was open and I saw a book on the floor so I thought I'd pick it up for you-."

"And you think that gives you the right to snoop in my office?! After I clearly told you not to?!"

"I... I wasn't snooping, I was going to go, I swear." Elaine couldn't recall a time she had seen Descole this angry. She knew it was her own fault for breaking the rules, but to see him this angry...

But she didn't think anymore as Descole almost shoved her away from him, letting go of her arm.

"Go. And if I ever catch you in here again, I assure you I'll reconsider my need of you." Descole spat, and Elaine didn't hesitate in leaving right away, and headed straight to her own room. Almost shaken as she did so. She doubted just simply letting her go is what Descole would do She swallowed after closing her door behind her and looked to her arm where Descole grabbed her, and saw the begin developments of a bruise.

"B-baise..." Elaine, while she could be frustrated, angry and frustrated, never really was one for swearing. It had been instilled in her from her parents to not do so. But she believed this was an appropriate exception.

Descole's reaction however, left much to be desired.

* * *

**OMAKE THEATER: Where Layton characters are chibi-fied!**

* * *

Professor Layton was a man willing to give second chances a majority of the time. Maybe he would be weary for one or two cases. But assuming the person didn't commit murder willing, strike a woman in the most horrid of ways or had any involvement with the movie version of 'Avatar: The Last Airbender', forgiveness could be given possibly.

Though he did feel weary when Descole showed up at his front door, grinning and blushing.

"Erm... Are, you quite alright? Descole?" For now, the Professor would ignore the question of how the masked man found his house. The frown he wore deepened when he noticed a funny smell from Descole. "Are... Are you drunk?"

"Nuuuuu..." Descole said, giggling briefly before trying to look serious. And failing. "I'm here, to take YOU and your Oliver Twist wanna-be to the beach!"

"Luke's visiting his parents." bluntly stated Professor Layton.

"Then it'll just be you, me and Elaine." Descole chirped. Layton however instantly saw a problem.

"But... Where's Elaine?"

"She's right..." Descole trailed off and frowned to himself when he realised Elaine wasn't next to him. Where could she...?

"SHIT!" Descole ran to the car he sto- Er... 'Borrowed' without permission, and worked on getting the boot open. Fearing the worst, Layton went to assist him and was shocked by what was inside after chickens jumped out to freedom.

Inside, Elaine and Raymond were gagged with a cloth and had their wrists and ankles bound with rope. They looked up at the Professor frantically, almost giving begging eyes. Being a gentleman as he is, he went to help her instantly while Descole helped Raymond.

"I'm so, soooo, sorry guys." Descole cooed as he tore the gag off and worked on pulling the ropes off. "I got detoured again and again. Then I got hungry and went to McDonald's but they kicked me out because I strangled a bitch for not giving me a lobster burger with extra mayonnaise and mustard."

"WE WERE IN THERE FOR THREE DAYS!" Elaine snapped.

"Three days?" Professor Layton paled at the thought of a woman and elderly man trapped in a small space with no air or food or water for such a long time. They would have to be fed immediately! "How could he still be drunk?"

"The Master gets like this once a year." Raymond sighed. "The pressures of life get to him so he drinks his sorrows away and gets... carried away." Now Professor Layton felt some pity for Descole. The way Descole showed his distaste of him made him wonder if he was one of these supposed 'pressures'.

"But we're all okay now, so we're heading to the beach!" Descole cheered. Everyone else edged away from him though.

"But, we don't have any swimsuits Master-"

"That's why we're going to drive underwater until we get to France. Since Hawthorne's French, we'll have little difficulty in finding a nude beach."

"... I'm not going to a nude beach."

"I don't wish to go either Master."

"Meh, sure."

Raymond and Layton looked at Elaine who only looked back innocently.

"What? Ma famille and I went to one before we moved to this prude country." Layton was about to reply to that before Descole began giggling in a drunk manner.

"I'M THE UNSTOPPABLE, BOOB-MAN!"

"Wh-AH?!" Elaine shrieked when Descole suddenly groped her breasts and ran across the street.

"MASTER! LOOK OUT FOR THAT TRUCK-!"

Needless to say, after that truck appeared, Descole was not going to the beach for five months at least.


	17. In the Library

The incident from the office wasn't brought up again the next time Elaine saw Descole. He just acted as though it never happened. Could that have been a good or bad thing? Elaine couldn't really answer the question herself. But to her, she had a more pressing question on mind.

Why did she actually, for the first time in months since first meeting him, feel scared of Descole? True, that anger he showed was stronger then usual but she shouldn't have been so... submissive as she had been in reaction. She couldn't have started developing Stockholm Syndrome now, could she? No. No she couldn't have. She remembered reading it from a college psychology book she received from a friend after graduation. While her interest in the subject wasn't too strong, she kept it among her small collection of books in case she felt like reading something from it that actually interested her.

She didn't have positive feelings towards Descole, right? She wasn't seeing this situation from his eyes. She... couldn't seriously have mixed feelings towards Descole? And, just because she could admit Descole had human characteristics as everyone else didn't mean... None of that meant she developing Stockholm Syndrome. Right?

The possibility was something that unnerved the archaeologist. How would she return to normal life after all of this? But that brought up another question of whether she would be fine after all of this. But Elaine shoved that thought down and repeated to herself, that she would be fine when she did. She would go home, hug her family and return to work. Maybe forget about excavation digs for a little while. No. No, she couldn't do that. That would be a victory to Descole. If any excavations popped up, she would see what it was before deciding.

... If she ever could go home.

But at the end of each day she kept thinking of the woman, Lucy, from the photograph. Descole definitely knew her. Why else would he have her photograph? Plus he seemed more angry at the fact Elaine was looking at the photo then just being in the room itself. But how were they connected? She hadn't looked at the frame long enough to get her surname except that it began with 'S'. So how did Descole know her? While she and Descole did talk and try to be civil to one another... Well, she would try and maybe give a smart remark here and there while Descole would speak to her in a mocking tone and maybe some empty threats (At least, she hoped they were empty), he never mentioned any family. Scratch that, he didn't talk of anything in his personal life.

They could have been related. The woman's surname was 'S', true. But Elaine had always figured Descole had lied about his name to begin with so it wouldn't have been a real shock if it turned out to be something else. Could Lucy have been a sister? That theory would be a bit inconclusive since Elaine didn't really know what Descole looked like, but while Lucy's skin tone wasn't as light as her's, it was lighter then Descole's. A cousin? Maybe. A wife? Well, Elaine saw no sign of a wedding ring on his fingers. Albeit she never got a chance to look very hard.

Why was she so intent to know anyway? That was another question that popped up. But she reasoned that to know Lucy's surname could lead to knowing Descole's true identity. A bit of a long shot, sure, but it felt reasonable enough.

"Hawthorne?" Elaine looked up from the book she had been reading in the library to see Descole enter and walk towards her. She swallowed but closed her book, keeping her thumb on her current page.

"Something you need?" Elaine asked. Keeping her tone free of any possible emotion.

"No. Just checking where you were. That you weren't planning some kind of escape." Elaine pursed her lips. She was pretty sure the translation for that was, 'Just making sure you weren't in my office again and that I didn't need to freak you out.'

"Well I'm 'ere. Reading James Joyce. So you don't need to check up on me." Elaine muttered as she went back to her book. Only to feel a slightly rough hand under her jaw and was forced to look up at a quite apathetic looking Descole.

"Now, dear. Don't you think you should be a bit more polite to your host?"

"'Ost?" Elaine glared. "You kidnapped me, you sociopath! The fact I'm still alive is a miracle!"

"And sometimes, miracles end."

Elaine clenched her teeth and fists. If it already wasn't clear to her that he could easily beat her, she possibly would have attempted a kick or even a punch. Trying to get rid of the silence, and hopefully make Descole leave, she questioned,

"So 'ow is your, 'brilliant', plan going?" The bitter scowl on his face had Elaine wondering if maybe she should have asked a less work related question.

"There is some... 'difficulty', in relation to the singer for Song of the Sea." Elaine was surprised that Descole actually admitted to this, but quickly retorted,

"So I'm guessing someone was smart enough to avoid you then?" Descole gave a sigh, slight frustration showing in it. He let go of Elaine's chin and walked towards the window to look outside.

"She was sick. Ill of a disease that seemed incurable." Descole began. Elaine frowned. While she would have been happy enough with Descole failing, other people having to suffer wasn't exactly what she had in mind. "She died a few months ago actually. Around the time I took you to Ambrosia to be more precise."

"... Oh." Elaine wasn't sure what else to say. That was the only word that could slip from her mouth.

"However, her father was willing to accept my assistance in a project of sorts. We have the girl's memories saved. We just need to find a host that can accept them." Elaine swallowed as she slowly stood up. Her gut clenched as her mind wandered towards the possibility that she could have been a consideration.

"Don't flatter yourself, Hawthorne." Descole said as he looked back to Elaine. "I'm not risking losing you unless absolutely necessary, and even then I doubt I would."

"Erm... Merci, I think? But, why are you telling me-."

"Because There's about as much chance you escaping and telling someone as there is me being bested by you." Descole looked outside again. "We still need a host for Melina though. So far there has been no luck. However, I do have a plan in mind if this continues."

"Dare I ask what it is?" Elaine wondered out loud. Descole didn't look back to her, but Elaine could see his reflection in the mirror smirking a little.

"Tell me, dear. Are you a fan of opera?"

"I can appreciate it, but I'm more of a jazz person." Elaine replied in a slightly dry tone. "Why does that matter?"

Because, you silly puppy. If you're a good girl, I may take you with me to watch before the plan begins. That is, assuming we can't find someone to accept Melina's memories." Elaine furrowed her brows as she stared at Descole.

"Did... Did you just call me, 'puppy'?"

"I did." Descole responded as he turned around fully to face her as he began to make his leave. Smirking as he added,

"Quite frankly, your angry face is more akin to that of a disgruntled puppy."


	18. A Gift

Assuming Elaine hadn't counted wrong or misread the calendar, she could say she's been held against her will by Descole for nearly a year now. While not a year to the day she was first kidnapped, it was still around the time the previous year she had been in Misthallery. The passing of Christmas had been pretty depressing in her opinion. While there had been a little cheer in the house, it still didn't change that she should have been home with her family. The same could have been said for New Year's, and she didn't even dare mention her birthday when it came by.

Descole's plans seemed to be closer and closer. While he certainly wasn't acting giddy or giggling (Images that would haunt Elaine for some time), he did seem to smile more than smirk some days. Well, it was a cocky, sardonic kind of smile but a smile none the less.

Elaine actually wondered what would happen exactly if Ambrosia did rise. The city itself would hardly cause some sort of supernatural apocalypse. Elaine would be willing to wager that. Descole on the other hand... Elaine couldn't guess what he had in mind. Maybe just take the glory of finding it? That seemed likely considering how arrogant he was. But if it didn't rise? Well, surely he would have learned from his mistakes Misthallery. There couldn't honestly be a repeat, could there?

... Dear God, she was going to have to trust Descole not to get in a hissy fit.

Elaine had been in her room, lying on the small love seat as she looked out through the window with a tired look on her face. She had one of those nights where she wanted to but just couldn't get to sleep. Now with the morning sun shinning in wasn't going to make things any easier. Maybe if she kept awake a little while longer she might fall asleep here and have an excuse not to go outside her room for the rest of the day.

Hearing her door open, Elaine glanced over briefly to see Descole come inside before looking back out.

"So what do you want?" Elaine grumbled as she forced herself to sit up.

"I just want to check something." That was all Descole said as he walked to the love seat and grabbed the back of her shirt and pulled it down a little.

"'E-'ey, what are you doing?!" Elaine was going to move away before Descole grabbed her shoulder firmly and kept her in place.

"Keep still, woman." Descole muttered. After a moment or two he let go and left without another word. Elaine blinked and quickly felt around her back. She didn't feel anything, but that still didn't explain whatever it was that Descole was doing exactly. That made her a little nervous and she took off her top to check the back of it herself in case Descole put something on it. But there was nothing.

"Étrange." Elaine mumbled as she put her top back on and laid back down again.

Elaine had decided to try and forget about that strange occurrence for the rest of the week. Surprisingly it was easy enough to do so and didn't even think about it when Descole came into the library, a slight smirk on his face before he said in a matter of act tone,

"We're leaving in two days."

"For Ambrosia?" Elaine guessed. It was the only logical place they could be going. Instead, his answer was quite different from what she expected.

"At later that night, but before that we'll be going to watch an opera."

"'We'll'?" Elaine repeated, feeling uneasy on why she had to come along.

"Obviously Raymond is coming. You don't expect me to leave you here alone, do you?" Descole scoffed. "I'd sooner trust you to hold a knife to my throat. Besides, I would think you would consider this an award for being a good puppy."

"Stop calling me a puppy." snapped Elaine. Descole however just went on like she never spoke.

"I also got you something to wear. I don't want to risk you being recognised. Besides, you could try dressing more formally for a change."

"Kinda 'ard when I only 'ave the one set of clo-." Elaine stopped as Descole's words repeated in her head. "Wh-what?"

"It's called, 'dressing for the occasion'. I think that should make it clear enough." Elaine narrowed her eyes as Descole smirked.

"Maybe you can take a leaf from your own book when it comes to excavations and not dress in a suit or for the stage" sneered Elaine.

"Maybe you should try on that outfit in your room before I decide to let you be a test for the wolves."

"What wolves?!" Elaine was seeing no sense of Descole's plan. It seemed so simple at the start from what she knew. Find someone to house Melina's memories, get her to sing Song of the Sea and raise Ambrosia. When the hell did opera and wolves get involved?!

"Oh, just some pets I've specially trained for chasing purposes." explained Descole.

"P-pourquoi? Why? Why would even-?"

"It's part of the game."

Elaine was beginning to wonder if Descole was actually messing with her. She would guess that he went insane, but Elaine suspected that happened long ago.

"Do I even want to know what this game is? From what you're describing, I already feel dread for whoever's participating." Elaine said.

"Oh, don't you fret about that just yet. The rules will be explained for the contestants after all." Descole then changed the subject. "I left the clothes in your room." While she was reluctant to do it, Elaine figured she may as well say it before leaving the room.

"Merci." Elaine grumbled as she returned the book she had been reading to its proper shelf and leaving the library.

She wasn't sure what to expect really. She didn't get her hopes up though. For all she knew, Descole could have gotten something very gaudy or something she would have felt stupid in. But arriving at her room, she could only sigh and get the shock out of the way and opened the door.

Stepping inside, she saw clothes on her bed and after closing her door she went over to take a proper look at them, and was met with a pleasant surprise.

The long, column dress was off white with pale pink trimming on the sweetheart neckline. The buttonless coat that went with it was a pale salmon colour and had elbow length sleeves. There was a pale pink belt to go with it that had a realistic looking white waterlily on it.

Elaine picked the dress up and held it to her as she looked in the mirror. It did seem like it would look wonderful on her. It was a nice colour too.

After putting the dress back on the bed, Elaine sat down on it and picked up the coat and after looking it over, held it close. A tiny, gentle smile playing on her lips. She wasn't sure why, but she felt… Special, maybe? That felt like the right word. For the first time since coming here she felt some true, genuine happiness. This almost felt like an award in a…

But Elaine then frowned. Why was she feeling happy? She was a kidnap victim. Granted she was in luxury compared to most people in that situation, but that still didn't change that she was here against her will. She couldn't be suffering from Stockholm Syndrome, she was too stubborn for it, right? There's no way she could feel anything positive towards Descole, right? That's why she didn't tell him about Song of the Sun…

But that thought sent that slightly familiar dagger of guilt through her gut. She put the coat back down on the bed and held her head down and put her hands to it.

"I'm fine. I'm perfectly fine. Descole deserves to fail…" She said this once in English and repeated it in French several times.

But each time that last phrase was said, a hammer seemed to pound on that dagger.

* * *

**OMAKE THEATER: Where Layton characters are chibi-fied!**

* * *

"I'm hungry." Aurora said, a small frown on her face. For no reason worth mentioning whatsoever, Aurora, Desmond and Elaine were at Professor Layton's house along with Luke and Emmy. The Professor himself frowned and went to the cupboards to find some food, but none was found."

"Well I'm afraid we're all out of food. I don't understand though, I just brought some this morning."

While everyone's bellies rumbled, Luke had shifty eyes. More so since his stomach was the loudest and could be faintly heard from outside.

"So, what should we do?" Desmond questioned, with a slightly bored tone.

That's when it began.

Desmond noticed Luke staring at him. Or more correctly, his hair.

"Um... Why are you..." But Desmond never got a chance to finish that sentence as Luke suddenly leaped up at the young looking man and tried to take a bite of his hair. Desmond of course did what any responsible, caring adult would do, and kicked Luke into a grandfather clock.

"DESMOND?!"

"THAT LITTLE TWERP TRIED TO BITE ME!" Desmond yelled back at Layton before Luke looked out of the clock and pointed at Desmond.

"HIS HAIR IS BREAD!" Desmond scoffed.

"I can assure you all that..." Desmond trailed off when he heard chewing close to his ears and felt some saliva. Much to his disgust, he noticed Emmy and Aurora on either side of him, chewing on his hair like cows on grass.

"MY HAIR ISN'T BREAD!" roared Desmond, shoving the girls away from him as he quickly stood up. Wiping saliva off of himself as he glanced at all the people he tried to bite him. Not trusting them to leave him be.

"Well... It couldn't hurt to test it..." Professor Layton pointed out, causing Desmond to back away from him. His only hope now was.

"Get your own hair bread!" Elaine snapped, grabbing onto Desmond and growling. "That tasty hair is mine!"

"GET AWAY FROM ME!" Desmond got away from Elaine and ran to the front door. He turned back only to see everyone moaning and walking towards him in a zombie-like way. All of them moaning the same thing.

"Bread..."

"Breeead..."

"Bread!"

Desmond was hyperventilating as he struggled to get the door open before he finally forcing it open and running out into the streets. But that wasn't really a good choice.

Several people seemed to turn into the same state once they saw him and several birds tried to take a bite of his hair.

"It's not bread!" Desmond cried as he ran. "It's not bread! I can't help that my hair grew in a funny way!"

He kept running until he arrived at what was possibly the only place he could hide until this madness was over.

An abandoned house. Because they're always safe in horror movies.

So Desmond ran inside and locked the door shut. Feeling safe, he lied down on the floor to rest. But that rest was disturbed as the door slammed open. Desmond sat up quicker then you could say 'a' and saw everyone there. Still moaning about bread, and Professor Layton int the lead.

Bastard must have used his damn puzzle powers!

"Bread..."

Desmond screamed high pitched, higher than a little girl really as they closed in.

Desmond's next trip the following morning, was a wig shop and then his lawyer's office with the intention to sue everyone.


	19. The Crown Petone

Elaine looked at herself in the mirror when she put the dress and coat on when the day of Descole's plan came. Would it have been bad for her to admit that she liked it? It did look lovely on her. Fitted her pretty well too. She had let her hair out of it's ponytail, letting her choppy brown hair brush against her shoulders. She would have thought she'd only feel happy wearing this dress if she wasn't being held against her will. But against that logic she still felt some sort of happiness. She was just happy to be outside after being cooped up for months. That's what she old herself. It seemed like a reasonable enough explanation to her. It had to be the only explanation.

It was around the afternoon, but Descole planned to arrive at their destination early. Easily expected really. Where exactly they were heading though, Elaine had yet to find out. Though remembering a conversation where he questioned if she had an interest in opera gave her an idea they were going to some sort of theater or opera house. It was the only type of place she could think of. But either way, it was a public place. There was always that chance, no matter how slim, that she might be rescued. Might escape.

"I didn't realise you enjoyed admiring yourself in the mirror." Elaine didn't bother to look at Descole.

"I was... Just thinking long thoughts." Elaine mumbled. "Like what sort of 'ell I'm in for tonight." She heard Descole tutting as he moved by her side and gripped her shoulder. Elaine glanced towards the window, not wanting to look at Descole. It just seemed these last couple months that the original loathing she had towards him waned. And she hated herself for it. She wondered if it was her own fault, for letting herself loose some of that anger and frustration. But the other side of her argued that it wasn't her fault. Descole just happened to be fairly charming at times, and was more likable as such.

"My dear, I can assure you that there won't be a 'hell' as such, as you eloquently put it." Elaine just huffed, still looking out the window. That ended though when she was forcibly turned around so she was facing Descole.

"It's rude not to look at the person you are talking too." He told her in a matter-of-fact tone.

"I'm not talking to you, I'm just responding." Elaine snapped as she stepped back from Descole. His hand slipping from her shoulder until he reached out and grabbed her arm, pulling her back.

"Now, don't you think you should be more polite. It's not everyday you get taken to an opera you know."

"It's only because this opera is apart of your plan, apparently."

"That doesn't mean you can't enjoy it." Elaine just swallowed and asked,

"So, is there anything I'll need to say? Do?"

"There's nothing for you to do. Not now anyway." Descole answered.

"And what am I suppose to say if someone does talk to us? Am I suppose to be your wife or something." Elaine mused dryly. Descole frowned, his grip tightening though not as badly as the office incident.

"Assistant. You're my assistant. Nothing else." Descole replied, though the way he said it made Elaine wonder if she had stepped an inch over some kind of line. She swallowed and said quietly, though loud enough to be heard,

"Sor-."

"Come. We wasted enough time with idle chat." Descole muttered as he began to drag Elaine outside her room. Elaine going along since right now, she had no choice or option.

The first thought Elaine had when she first saw the Crown Petone that evening was that it was definitely built for rich people or those who had at least enough money to go to. A few golden, shinning lights were on, along with blue and orange and once darkness settled it would look like some sort of small castle, though it's shape seemed to slightly resemble a crown. The effect was certainly helped with it being built over sea with cyprus tres around the edge of land surrounding it.

Since the show wasn't until later that night, there weren't too many people. Well, unless you counted two men dressed in black and wearing white masks waiting in the entrance hall (That seemed to glow in gold and red) for Descole. Two of many henchmen he hired for his plan. And from what Elaine could hear outside the theater though, there was a final rehearsal going on. Whether they were aware of the small group now in the entrance hall. Descole was talking quietly with them, not that Elaine was going to complain about being left out. If anything, she was happy enough with being left out. She would rather look at some of the ancient antiques decorating the room.

"Ms. Hawthorne." Elaine looked away from a painting of a fictional king to Descole. "Stay here. I'll be back momentarily." He turned to leave towards a smaller door for staff members, though the henchmen stayed by both doors to outside and the theater. Probably on Descole's orders to make sure she didn't try to hide or escape. Elaine gave a small sigh and looked at some of the other antiques and archaeological intrigues.

Such as grey, almost silvery crystals found near Mt. Etna in Sicily. A rare find and while Elaine never had an interest in geology (possibly stemming from her disdain of Geography in primary school), she could appreciate the simplistic beauty of it and that it would interest other people besides herself. A tooth believed to have belonged to a saber-tooth cat was rather interesting. When she was in her teens she remembered that she would have liked to have been one. All pictures she had seen of how they may have looked were divine and they seemed so graceful. The room also seemed to have a big supply of crowns. It wouldn't have been surprising if the person who actually owned this place had an obsession with crowns.

But a thought came to mind as she glanced again to the staff door. It felt strange that Descole seemed to walk straight in without some sort of caution. Was he involved with this opera theater's construction somehow? Or did he know the owner? If the former, that would lead to the question how Descole got the money for all this. It seemed to cost more then she made a year. Maybe he did some odd jobs on the side. The kind of odd jobs that involved stealing highly valuable items and selling them on the black market. Descole was a criminal so it made sense in theory. But at the same time, he could have seen selling such items on the black market as beneath him. Or maybe he was just plain, ridiculously wealthy.

Elaine wrinkled her nose at that. There was no such thing as wealth without a source. That's what her father told her before she left for college. Wanting her to be careful not to fall in with bad people.

_Bark! Bark!_

Startled, Elaine turned away from examining a jewelry box that had intricate, Celtic engravings just in time to see a grey wolf jump at her. Too shocked to move on time, Elaine yelped as the wolf tackled her to the ground, it's legs either side of her keeping her from simply getting straight up. Instead, she slowly back away and once not completely under the animal sat up but still couldn't escape as her back hit the wall below the display case. They wolf simply looked at her, looking indifferent, but it's eyes were narrowed and studying her every move.

Hearing a chuckle, Elaine glanced up to see Descole walking towards her, the smile on his mouth looking as if this was entirely hilarious to him.

"I didn't think you would be so scared of a harmless wolf, Ms. Hawthorne." Descole said, a hint of teasing in his tone. Elaine scowled however but didn't dare raise her voice higher then necessary with the wolf so close.

"'Armless?! He attacked me!"

"He only tackled you, and he was playing. Well, at least I told him to." Descole smirked before patting the side of his leg. The wolf stepped back and moved to Descole's side. Elaine only noticed now that her heart had been racing. Descole came closer and held a hand out, a condescending smirk on his face. Elaine however ignored it and pushed herself up. A little difficult since the dress didn't give her legs enough space to move more then enough for just walking and maybe running if she held the skirt up high enough. It would likely impede her kicking too. Probably why Descole chose it to begin with. Even if it did look nice, he wouldn't want her to escape so easily.

"So, 'e's one of the wolves you mentioned?" Elaine questioned as she looked down at said wolf, giving it a slightly weary look.

"Indeed. Honestly, this one is my favourite." Descole admitted as he gave it a scratch behind one of it's ears. The wolf moved closer, loving the attention. It was only then that Elaine noticed the metal device covering one of it's ears.

"So, you decided to bring him with you?"

"I thought my puppy might like some company when I'm not around."

"I'm not your puppy!" Elaine snapped, only to go silent when the wolf gave a sharp bark. Descole tutted.

"You really should control your temper, my dear. You should behave more like Charles."

"... You named 'im Charles?"

"Hmp, I'd like to see you come up with a better name." Descole drawled. Elaine didn't bother replying. At least not out loud. In her mind she was muttering that she was not a puppy.

"So what do you think of the artifacts?" Descole questioned as he moved to Elaine's side and looked at the box she had been looking at it.

"They're interesting. Very diverse." Elaine admitted. She could never lie about this. If she were just attending this place like a normal audience member, then such a place could have been considered a Heaven for her. Good music and artifacts. All there would have to be would be good books and maybe some chocolate and she would question if she had died at some point before coming here.

"And very old too. Wouldn't you agree?" Descole asked, moving on to look at some spear heads. Reluctantly, Elaine followed after him.

"I suppose so, but isn't that what artifacts usually are?" Elaine wondered before pausing to think over Descole's words. "... Are... Are these 'ere for a specific reason?"

"Have you ever heard of a theater housing artifacts? Even one or this kind?"

"Why are they here then?"

"You'll find out soon enough." Elaine flinched at first once she felt the wolf, Charles, nudge up against her. "See, he likes you."

"Doesn't change that 'e scared me." Elaine mumbled, before she felt a lick on the back of her hand from Charles. Hesitantly, Elaine reached out to pat it's head, smiling a tiny bit when it leaned it towards her touch. "So when does the show start?"

"Eight o'clock." Descole replied. "So there's plenty of time to admire these artifacts, Ms. Hawthorne."

"But, don't you 'ave anything else to do?"

"It's being taken care of. I wouldn't be here if it wasn't."

It was this moment as they looked at the many displays that made Elaine remember why she had been willing (even if to a degree) to talk to Descole in Misthallery to begin with. They both had strong interests in archaeology and while such interests had led them towards different paths in life and career choice, it was still something they both enjoyed and, if Elaine dared to say it, bond over. Actually talking about the objects actually made Descole more likable to Elaine during that time. Giving her a mixed feeling of annoyance and, for some reason, a little joy.

"So, assuming these artifacts are only 'ere for your plans, what will 'appen to them afterwards?" Elaine asked as they looked at what were images depicting a burnt mound (Or fulacht fiadh as it was called in Ireland).

"I plan to have them packed and brought away from here before the night ends. I don't plan to loose most of these items so easily." The way Descole said it all seemed to confirm Elaine's suspicion of him doing some sort of thievery on the side, but there was something else about that sentence that seemed eerie.

"Tonight? Why tonight exactly?" Elaine asked, looking at the masked man. He gave a smirk that seemed a little chilling.

"That, my dear, will be surprise." He pulled a brass pocket watch out from under his cloak and looked at it quickly. "A little past half six. It would be best for us to leave this room now before staff and early guests start to appear." Descole grabbed her hand and led her towards the stairs to the balcony seating as Charles followed, staying close to it's master. Elaine's heart skipped a beat but she ignored it. Instead, another thought preoccupied her mind. Something she only realised now.

This was the first day since Misthallery Descole called her Ms. Hawthorne, and not only that but called her 'dear'.


	20. Music

The balcony that Descole led Elaine to was a further away from the other one, though it still had a good view of the stage itself. No doubt Descole always expected the best for himself. The seats were comfortably as well so Elaine didn't really have anything to complain about. Except there would be absolutely nothing to do until the opera started. And sitting next to Descole for so long like this wasn't really helping. At least in the entrance room there were the artifacts to observe. Charles however was probably content standing by his master's chair. Then again though, what would there be to contradict that?

The theater itself was empty of the people Elaine had heard in there earlier. Probably taking a rest until it was time to begin. But in a corner of the theater, a little close to their balcony actually, Elaine saw what had to have been the most bizarre instrument ever conceived. The main part of it looked like an organ, albeit a bigger then where you would normally see them such as churches. However, rising out from it were various instruments normally seen in orchestras such as percussion and string instruments and brass as well. It could have been seen as some sort of genius invention by some, or a monstrosity to all music.

"That's the Detragon." Elaine gave a small jilt. She had been so busy looking at the strange piece that she forgot for a moment that Descole was beside her.

"Detragon?"

"It's designed to simulate an entire orchestra through the organ keys. I think you'll find it to be an impressive creation of mine."

"Interesting. But why would you even bother..." Elaine trailed off. The likely reason came to mind quickly enough and the smirk on Descole's face more or less confirmed it. "If it's for rising Ambrosia, why 'ave it 'ere? Why not on the island?"

"Oswald Whistler is the composer of tonight's opera. He does need something to play."

"Oswald Whistler? So 'e's the man you're working with?" Elaine looked back to the Detragon. She recalled the Specter-bots from Misthallery being able to combine which led her to ask,

"So, does this Detragon do anything else? And assuming it does, does Mr. Whistler know?"

"He... did design part of it." The way Descole sounded as he said it made it clear he was reluctant to acknowledge this. It actually made Elaine smirk from how childish he was being in a way. "Mostly just the components for holding his daughter's memories, and transferring them into subjects."

"And he doesn't know what you're really planning, does he?"

"Of course not." Descole leaned close to Elaine to whisper in her ear. "And if you were to meet Mr. Whistler, I would strongly suggest you don't speak a word. We're clear, yes?" Descole asked, putting a finger to his lips as if Elaine was a child being told to keep a secret. Elaine decided to change the subject.

"So, where is Raymond? I thought 'e was just putting the cart and horses somewhere else?"

"He is." Descole responded. "But we'll be meeting up with him again later on." Elaine raised and eyebrow. "Oh, don't give me that look. He'll be watching too. He just has a different seat is all."

What seemed like eternity eventually passed as people began to come in to take their seats. The audience filling in and replacing the dull red with various colours of formal attire, lightly chatting as they filled in. Elaine lightly scanned the crowd. Maybe if she was lucky she would spot a familiar face or two. Chances were slim, true. After all there were hundreds of people present. Then there was the fact that as far as she knew, no one she knew had any interest in opera so it was vain no matter what.

The opera soon began a short time after everyone sat and the lights dimmed. The music from the Detragon played and Elaine leaned her head to try and get a look at Mr. Whistler. It was hard to get much detail on him with the lack of lighting, but he had thick hair that was either a grey blue or darker and wore a purple suit that while not atrociously bright stood out.

The star of the show herself (A young, red haired woman who was at least ten years or less younger then Elaine. Though Elaine wouldn't say it out loud for fear of sounding old) was divine in Elaine's opinion. Her voice was wonderful and she looked like a real Queen in her costume. The acting was realistic if Elaine said so herself, though she felt one or two background characters might have been overacting. But then again, she wasn't exactly an expert in theater so who was she to judge?

The opera was beginning to reach it's end when she felt Descole's grab her arm lightly, startling her a bit before he pulled her up.

"It's time to go. The game will begin soon."

"Where are we going exactly?" Elaine inquired as they made their leave, walking through a more isolated route to stay away from the rest of the audience. Charles keeping by Descole's side.. Elaine tried to keep the disappointment out of her voice, but she would rather have stayed until the end. It was really getting good and for a moment she forgot she was here against her free will.

"A hidden place to start the game and give my puzzles fom them to solve."

* * *

**OMAKE THEATER: Where Layton characters are chibi-fied!**

* * *

Fredrick was just your average guy. Nothing particularly special about him. But he needed some cash so when he saw an add in the paper about a guy looking for some henchmen, he figured it would be easy enough.

Granted he didn't expect to work for a masked man who was possibly metrosexual with a thing for dramatics, ancient stuff and all that junk. But the pay would be enough to pay off his loan to El Diabolo. If he didn't pay back a hundred Canadian dollars by the end of the month, they were going to destroy his copy of Kingdom Hearts Two Final Mix. He just couldn't let that happen. He still had yet to beat the second Armoured Xemnas!

To say he was disturbed when the Crown Petone blew up would have been an understatement. He actually wondered if he should have sneaked onto the submarine containing the losers (Said losers were being forced to listen to 'We Are the Champions', by Queen, except it only pointed out how they were losers and not champions) instead of this one. But the thought of his game in peril kept him from doing so.

Plus there was that cute chick. He didn't really know much about her, but from he could tell from a quiet conversation between her and Descole, she was French. He wondered if it would be worth asking her out. She looked pretty depressed. Maybe if he played it cool, he could cheer her up and maybe get a date for when all this was over.

"Hey, um...?" The poor guy was sure how to get the words out after he walked up to Elaine who was looking through one of the portholes. Said girl looked at him, looking apprehensive.

"Er, I know this may be an awkward time to ask you something." Fredrick scratched the back of his neck. "But, maybe after this we could go-."

The next thing he knew, a shout of 'MINE!' was heard before the side of his face met a punch and he hit into a wall. He looked up in a daze to see a growling Descole putting his arms around Elaine (Who looked freaked out.) in a possessive manner.

"Don't you even dare! I saw her first! Get your own captive!" Descole snapped, holding Elaine closer to him.

"Wh-wha-?"

"Do you know what it's like? Hm?! To be intelligent, handsome, charming, skillful, flexible and gentlemanly? To be every girl's dream man?!"

"I-."

"Only, to be constantly paired with men?!" Descole's eyes narrowed behind his mask as he took out his sword and held it towards a now deathly pale Fredrick. Elaine herself wasn't any better. "And not just men who are your arch nemesis or roughly twenty to thirty years older then yourself, but men who you have never even been acquainted with?! I don't know any fucking Antons! Or God damn Clives! Yet I'm seen with them more then I should be."

"I'm sor-."

"You'll never understand my pain!" Descole went on. "Elaine is perhaps my only hope on this site not to forever be damned to a sausage fest! And I'll be damned if I let you think you can take away my woman!"

Fredrick swallowed nervously, raising his hands up as he stood and backed away slowly.

"I... I'm sorry. Sir. I-it won't happen again!" Descole didn't respond right away but he eventually put his sword back in it's sheath.

"Good. Now go away!" Fredrick did so.

"W-was that necessary?" Elaine questioned, looking greatly disturbed.

"Indeed it was." Descole muttered, stroking Elaine's hair and licking the side of her face as he hissed one phrase repeatedly.

"Preciooouuusssssss. My, preciouuuussss."


	21. The First Two Game Puzzles

A game for Eternal Life. A game for immortality. The rules when they were given made the whole thing sound like some sort of horror movie in a way, with how the losers would supposedly die. And if that really was the case, the idea of a small genocide caused a sick feeling to come over Elaine, increased more when those who had tried to leave the theatre tried to leave, only to find themselves fall into trap doors as the building itself, really a ship, pulled away from the mainland.

A more pleasant surprise though was seeing Professor Layton was actually here along with Luke. Looking down at Descole, who kindly took the only chair the room and left her standing while he prepared to give out the first puzzle of the game, Elaine couldn't tell how he felt about that since he just a confident smirk on his face when that… balloon… robot… thingy, first appeared to explain the game. She could have sworn it lessened though, so that had to be a sign. Good or bad would depend on who you asked.

She had also been fairly happy to see Inspector… What was his name again? … Ah, Growsky, Inspector Growsky. She had been fairly happy to see him, thinking perhaps she might have some possible rescue. Until it went flying out. Quite literally considering that Detective Growsky had attempted to arrest the announcer before it inflated and carried him out through the now open ceiling.

"Look around you ladies and gentlemen." Elaine started paying attention to Descole as he spoke into the microphone, altering his voice slightly. Might as well hear what the puzzle was.

Finding the oldest thing and stand by it? On a ship full of antiques? With a music box-like time limit? Elaine bit her tongue as she wondered where most of the people would go. Anything such as fossils or bones of extinct species.

"Care to play along?" Elaine raised an eyebrow at Descole's question.

"Play along?"

"I'm just curious if you'll at least get the right answer." Descole retorted, lazily petting Charles' head. Elaine looked back to the screens and thought over the answer.

The ship was full of antiques, though the dates of said antiques was were never noted so for someone without at least a basic understanding of archaeology, there were bound to be several losers in this round. But even with knowledge of archaeology it would be difficult. After all, if methods such as carbon dating or counting tree rings or comparing styles of vases etc could be off by a margin in determining age, how could human memory try to remember all the artefacts on the ship and then determine which was the oldest out of all of them. Elaine nibbled her lip as she thought back over the artefacts she could remember, but then something occurred to her. Why would the ceiling be open? What purpose did it serve? Descole was a tricky and clever person. He could have meant something other than the artefacts for all she knew. Yes, that sounded plausible. With so many on the ship, they would be perfect red herrings.

If that was the case, what was the answer then? Did it have something to do with the ceiling? If so, what? It had to have been in the sky, so what could be old and visible in the sky…

"… The stars?" Elaine guessed, a few seconds before the music ended. It was a bit of a wild guess. She could have been thinking in a completely wrong way. Descole didn't respond to her, but he spoke into the microphone.

"Ladies and gentlemen, your time is up. The oldest thing you can see are the stars above you. To those of you in the theatre, congratulations. You, can continue.

"But for those of you who got it wrong…"

Elaine could faintly hear the shocked yells as the people who got it wrong fell down trap doors. Looking at some of screens focusing on the theatre, she felt relief knowing the Professor and Luke were still in the game. Why they were here would be a mystery to her until something came up. But that just meant that a chance of rescue was still possible if she was lucky and careful. However, the faiths of the losers and those who tried to escape was beginning to weigh on her conscience so as the music score turned over, ready to be used again, she tentatively asked,

"They're… They're not actually… Dead, are they?"

"My dear, do I honestly look like I would waste time committing murder?" Descole asked, a bit of a condescending tone in his voice. "It would be pointless and messy." Elaine would have said something else. Possibly snap at him for his condescending attitude or something along those lines had he not held a finger up at her to stay silent as he gave the next puzzle.

To go where one can find the biggest crown.

With so many crowns on the ship, it would be impossible to compare them all on time. Descole had to have been aware of that himself, so any crown was an obvious decoy. Not necessarily red herrings since it was too obvious that they were not the answer, so it had to have been something else.

A knock then came to the door, and Raymond entered.

"They say the submarines are ready to go, Master."

"Submarines…?"

"Excellent. Come along now Ms. Hawthorne." Descole stood up and began to leave, Charles at his side. Elaine frowned. He didn't drag her with him this time. Something was wrong.

"You're not going to drag me?"

"Ms. Hawthorne, I think you're old enough to walk by yourself. Besides…" He turned back to give a malicious grin. "I would think a ship about to blow up in several minutes would be enough incentive to move to your only escape from a burning death."

Elaine's mouth gapped a little, before common sense smacked in and she quickly followed after him.

Man who kidnapped her or not, she wasn't stubborn enough to risk dying now in such an unfamiliar place.

"Feel like making another guess to the riddle, Ms. Hawthorne?" Descole questioned her by the time they began descending some steps in a darker area. A damp smell began to come to Elaine's nose, its source fairly clearly.

Elaine thought over the riddle. They were obviously heading to Ambrosia. But what of the passengers who were still competing? Elaine thought this over in her mind. They were going out to sea, and if the contestants were heading to Ambrosia as well, they would have to take a boat, and there they would see…

"The Crown Petone itself?"

"Correct you are. We'll see who was smart enough to guess the same tomorrow morning." Descole said before they entered a room that seemed to be either in or close to the bowels of the ship, a submarine prepared to launch once all people were inside. A few henchmen were loading the Detragon into the submarine, and seemed to be struggling with the weight.

"I hope for all of your sakes that you know to be careful with that." Descole snarked at them, causing them to flinch a little. Elaine felt a little better, knowing she was the only one who occasionally flinched because of Descole. Not that she would admit to doing so in the first place.

Inside the submarine itself was more or less what she expected. Compact, enough light just to see and enough space to move. Plus space for the Detragon itself of course. Whatever henchmen weren't bringing the losers back to shore were here, the rest probably taking other ways to get to Ambrosia. Elaine stood by Descole's chair awkwardly, said man looking cool and collected while Charles rested by his feet. While she doubted the henchmen would have caused her any hassle or trouble, but it still felt… 'safer', to use the word loosely, to stand by Descole then anyone else on this sub. Well, maybe Raymond too. But he was by Descole's other side so it didn't make much of a difference.

I would 'ave thought you would want to actually stand for a while considering you've been sitting down all night." Elaine muttered to herself, as she folded her arms. Her clothes might have been nice, but it was cool in here and they were not made for cool areas such as this.

"And I would have thought bringing you here would have made you more thankful towards me for my kindness." Descole remarked dryly. Elaine repressed a snort, and tried to keep herself prepared for when the sub was launched. When it was however, she ended up having to grip onto the arm rest of Descole's chair to keep herself standing, having nearly stumbled and fallen. It didn't help her pride that Raymond was still standing while calmly holding onto the armrest on his side for support. Descole gave a small chuckle to himself, but Elaine glared as she stood herself up and gripped tightly onto the armrest, digging her nails in. Shortly after, an explosion was just barely heard, followed by debris floating down to the dreary sea bottom. Elaine then thought to herself in French in response to Descole's last statement,

_'Yes, because every girl wants to go an opera house that ends up getting blown up.'_


	22. Night Time Stars

The journey itself was probably faster than how the competitors were getting to Ambrosia. But Elaine was still bored and had gotten tired with waiting and doing nothing and so sat down on the floor, with her back against the side of Descole's chair. With nothing said by the man, Elaine assumed he either didn't care or just didn't notice. Either way, she was not going to stand for who knows how long.

Elaine also must have been more tired than she had expected because there was a complete blank in her memory caused by her falling asleep. A sleep that was only broken when a foot began nudging her waist sharply. She groaned as she opened her eyes and blinked once or twice before looking up at Descole, though Elaine didn't react immediately to whatever it is he wanted of her as a part of her was still partially asleep.

"Well? Are you going to just sit there or do I have to carry you?" Elaine wasn't sure what made her more annoyed. The question itself or the mocking tone.

"I can walk myself, thank you." Elaine spat as she pushed herself up and noticed that several of the henchmen were already leaving through the exit. "So we're at Ambrosia?"

"Yes, so you can stop lazing about and move."

"Fine! It's getting stuffy in 'ere anyway." Elaine muttered before she made her way to the hatch to get out.

They were on a beach, different from the one she and Descole had arrived at when she was here last time. Probably on the other side of the island for all she knew. While most the henchmen were already making their way ahead (Some staying behind to move the Detragon), Elaine stayed on the beach and squinted her eyes as she just barely saw something sticking out amongst the trees. The dark night probably wasn't helping much either. It looked like the top of a, castle maybe? If they had been on the other side of the island, it probably wouldn't have been seen. But it was still odd. While she may not have fully explored this island, the castle still seemed like it would be out of place.

"Trying to admiring my castle?" Elaine mentally sighed as she closed her eyes. Of course, only Descole would have gone to the trouble of making a castle.

"No. I'm wondering where you get the money to throw around for all of this." Elaine retorted as she folded her arms. She had hoped it would have shown her agitation or disdain, and not how cold she was in this night time air.

"Ah, a man such as myself has his ways."

"What? Deals on the black market?"

"Sometimes." Elaine looked sharply at Descole in shock as he said that so calmly, Raymond standing diligently by his side. Descole seemed incredibly entertained by Elaine's face.

"I… I was just kidding." Descole smirked as he leaned closer to Elaine.

"Maybe I was too~." Elaine scowled and stepped away, wanting her own privacy in her personal space. She only noticed now that Charles was nowhere to be seen. He probably wandered off to join any other wolves that were on this island.

"So we're going to your castle then?"

"In a bit." Descole murmured as he looked out to the sea. He seemed so relaxed as he looked on. Then a tiny smile came to his face. A genuinely kind smile. Perhaps he was recalling a memory from the past?

"Raymond, go on ahead. We'll be coming along shortly."

"Yes, Master." Raymond gave a small bow of his head before he went towards the woods to head towards the castle. Elaine was a bit unsure what to do herself. Descole made it sound like both him and herself were staying here until further notice, but there wasn't too much to back that up with.

"Have you ever seen a beach so beautiful, Ms. Hawthorne?" The questioned seemed out of nowhere, and Elaine considered not responding but decided against it.

"I… I suppose not." Elaine responded. "I'm guessing the same for you?"

"There was one place," Descole admitted. "But I think it only seems that way in my mind because…" He just trailed off.

"… Because…"

"… It doesn't matter now." Descole muttered. "It's all in the past. Just memories. I just can't tell if they're memories I want or not." Elaine frowned, not having a response to give. Descole possibly said more than he would have liked and probably wouldn't go into more detail if she asked.

"The, um… Stars look nice 'ere." Elaine commented weakly. Trying to make some attempt at conversation.

"They do." Descole agreed as he looked up. "Did you know stars come in different colours, depending on their age?"

"No."

"Well they do. New stars tend to be a variety of colour, but usually are seen as blue since the colour stands out more, though they tend to die off after a few hundred billion years. The red ones tend to stay around much longer."

"I see. I usually just try to find constellations if I'm looking at them." Elaine said.

"Such as, say… Andromeda?" Descole pointed in what to some would have been a random piece of sky but Elaine could make out the pattern meant to represent the Greek mythological figure.

"Oui," Elaine agreed. "And perhaps… Boötes." Elaine added, pointing at another constellation.

"Puppis." Descole noted another and Elaine looked in the direction he was pointing, having never heard of that one. It looked a bit like a zigzag like with two triangles attached.

"I didn't think you were so interested in astrology." Elaine mused, looking at Descole. Said man chuckled and looked back to her.

"I would consider myself a very multitalented person with various interests. And I never imagined you as having any interest in stars either."

"I wouldn't be an expert. I just remember some that my grandfather pointed out to me when I was young." Elaine admitted. Descole gave a small nod before looking up at the stars.

"… Do you believe in an afterlife of any kind, Ms. Hawthorne?"

"Why are you asking?" Elaine asked, giving him a weary look.

"Just answer my question. Do you, or do you not?"

"… I like to believe there is."

"And do you believe the souls of our departed watch, and are willing to forgive?"

"That's a bit of a stra-."

"Just answer the question!" Descole snapped.

"… I 'onestly couldn't say. I don't really think that far ahead."

"I suppose it is a bit of a depressing subject." Elaine's curiosity rose though. Those questions just seemed personal. Not so much towards her but Descole. She wanted to ask him a question but he was already talking.

"Let's go. It will be hours before the contestants make it here so there's no point staying out here and doing nothing." Descole grabbed Elaine's hand and began leading her towards the forest, towards a castle she would soon see to be ominous and dark.

The inside of the castle, or rather the part of the castle they were in, was rather elegant albeit a bit simple compared to what Descole was probably use to but the paintings probably made up for that. But Elaine found herself led into a living room, with open doors leading to a small balcony and an ice bucket with wine and a few wine glasses. Elaine just went over to the balcony to look out at the sea. The scenery did look lovely here. Splendid really. She could imagine herself coming here on her free will.

She ignored the sound of the wine glass being opened. But she was still surprised when she saw a wine glass held out to her by Descole, already holding one himself.

"I thought since you were more or less well behaved today, the puppy could have an extra treat before bedtime." Elaine grumbled under her breath as she accepted the glass.

"Stop calling me puppy."

"I could, but I think we both know that will never happen."

"So is being a, 'good puppy', really your reason to give me wine?"

"Of course. What other reason would I need?" Descole scoffed before taking a small sip. "You didn't cause trouble, so you get an award. I am capable of generosity you know."

"When you get what you want, like a spoiled brat."

"You really should watch your tongue. Who knows where it may end up?" Elaine didn't respond. All she could do was enjoy the taste of this wine (Which was delicious) and see what happened next. It was still cold, her light clothing not helping. But she didn't shiver. Either the cold was starting to numb her enough not to feel it, or she just kept her body stiff as possible.

However, the feeling of heavy fabric draped over her shoulders was soon felt and Elaine glanced down to see Descole's cloak on her. She looked over to the masked man who was just simply staring out to sea.

"Be careful not to get wine on it. I want it back later." That was all he said. Elaine held the cloak tighter around her, allowing her body to feel the warmth provided by it. She also noticed something else. There was a faint whiff of some kind of cologne coming from near the neck of the cloak. She could tell what exactly it smelled of though. Something herby, maybe?

Elaine brought the cloak tighter around her, trying not to smile.

* * *

**Okay, so I meant to say this earlier, but my memory is so great that I completely forgot to. I did a picture and profile of Elaine on my Deviantart account. The link to my Deviantart account is in my profile and you should have no trouble finding our poor protagonist :)**


	23. Creeping Thoughts

Elaine had found herself fairly comfortable as she began to wake up the following morning. Opening her eyes tiredly, Elaine saw herself in a darker room, on the floor with Descole's cloak still on her and…

Descole's cloak still on her?

Elaine sat up, holding some of the cloak in her hands, shocked to see it still here. While her memory was never the best, she faintly recalled Descole leaving the room, saying he had to check on some things. Elaine, feeling a bit tired again, had laid down on the couch and shut her eyes, not truly expecting to fall asleep. Well, obviously she did.

She was startled when the cloak was suddenly tugged out of her hands and looked up just in time to see Descole bring the cloak around himself and tie the strings of it together. Elaine gave a weary look to his side when she noticed a sheath with a sword inside. How long had that been there and why did Descole have it?

"About time you woke up." He muttered.

"'Ow could I wake up from such a 'comfy' floor?" Elaine muttered back in a sarcastic tone as she stood up.

"Simple. Open your eyes and stand up. That's how you do it." Descole turned to walk back to the monitor he had been sitting at. With no sound other than the hum of said monitor, Elaine was beginning to feel a bit out of place just standing in the nearly empty room. She cleared her throat and asked,

"So, why did you bring me here?"

"I decided to be kind and let you use my cloak as a blanket, and I wanted to make sure you wouldn't try to steal it." Elaine had doubts of that excuse. It just sounded… Off to her somehow.

"And I was on the floor because…?"

"I didn't say I was planning on being a saint without sins." Elaine glanced to the monitor and with slow and silent steps moved up behind Descole to look at the screen.

"It's rude to look over people's shoulders you know." Descole pointed out in a dry voice.

"If you're reading. I don't think there's nothing too wrong with trying to watch something." Elaine retorted, not looking away from the screen. The contestants were there, Professor Layton and Luke among them as well as the singer from the opera last night and Mr. Whistler. She was surprised to see a table with food and drink prepared for them.

"You're actually feeding them?"

"How are they going to run on an empty stomach?"

"Run? From what?" Elaine tried to see as much of the area the screen would show, but could see no danger.

"The wolves of course. What, did you believe they would have just been for show? Very pointless I must say." There was a brief silence before he added, "I can assure you that they won't eat the contestants. At most, just terrify them. Make them regret all negative decisions they have ever made."

"Aren't you an âme gentille et douce?" Elaine said as she folded her arms. "And if they do get caught by the wolves, what then?"

"They're out of the game, and will stay in the dungeon cell until the game is finished." Descole sounded a little irritated with all of Elaine's questions. Elaine couldn't do much. She was in a more or less powerless position. She doubted she could just easily leave the room since Descole did bring her here in the first place. She didn't even know how the controls in front of Descole worked so if by some chance he left her alone in here, she wouldn't know what to do with them. She wasn't an expert with this kind of stuff.

It was a bit hard to believe for Elaine that she was here simply because of her career choice. She probably still would have went ahead with it if she knew to some degree that something like this would happen. But that didn't stop her from wondering if she should have applied for a job at a different museum. She knew that there was a museum near an art gallery in Monte d'Or, where her cousin Madeline was. Elaine couldn't recall off the top of her head right now what Madeline did there exactly. Something involving the, Ledore family, maybe? It sounded along the right track. Maybe not the right family name but it was on some form of correct track.

Elaine was sure it was either an assistant of some kind or accountant.

Elaine cleared her throat and asked,

"So, what happens after someone wins?"

"Assuming their body accepts Melina's memories, Ambrosia will be raised with the Song of the Stars and Song of the Sea, and will belong to me of course. You get the honour of translating any glyphs found after that."

Elaine didn't say anything else, but she smirked to herself as she remembered one important detail. Song of the Sun. She never mentioned it and it was still unknown, likely to all and not just Descole. No. It WAS unknown. There had been little evidence of Ambrosia's existence to begin with, and what information did seep up was by sheer fortune. Elaine wasn't even sure how Descole got those papers that led to this island in the first place. Maybe someone else had stumbled upon them and Descole stole them? It didn't sound beneath the man to do so. At least by much. But no matter what, Elaine was certain Ambrosia would not rise. At least not by Descole.

The thought of Descole seeing himself fail at this made Elaine want to smirk in triumph. Maybe it was a bit petty, but what was her one moment of vindictive nature compared to everything Descole has done up to now?

That's when other thoughts began to creep up to her mind. Thoughts that weren't so pleasant and actually made her uneasy.

Her action of omitting the Song of the Sun had been done with little to no thought whatsoever. On a whim really. Stubbornness can have good and bad sides. An example of a good side being that one would be very tenacious and determined towards a goal and refusing to just stop. Elaine preferred to see her stubbornness in this light. However, the bad side would involve acting on impulse and sometimes acting without thinking. Being an archaeologist, such things would not really be beneficial, but Elaine has so far kept such things from interfering with work and instead having it directed towards personal situations such as the one she was in.

The reason why this is important to know is because frankly, Elaine was only beginning to realise how bad of a decision she made early on in only mentioning two songs. Maybe the realization came up earlier in the form of the guilt early on. Guilt brought on only because of the possibility she was developing Stockholm Syndrome. At least, that was what Elaine repeatedly told herself.

But new scenarios of possible outcomes were popping up. What if Descole found out? No doubt he would be furious. How furious exactly, Elaine didn't wish to know but had no doubt it would end badly for her. Then there was another in which his plan to get Melina's memories into someone actually worked and he tried to raise Ambrosia only to fail. All that money, time and work for nothing. No doubt he would be just as furious and accuse Elaine of lying or blaming her in some other shape or form. Again, Elaine didn't want to know the outcome for herself.

These ideas alone almost made Elaine wonder if she should come clean. Surely it couldn't hurt too much for Descole to rise Ambrosia? As far as Elaine knew, there wasn't any sort of curse on the island or kingdom (Unless you counted a fruitless journey to find immortality), so it wouldn't lead to some such as some kind of apocalypse, right? Descole probably just wanted some kind of fame from what she knew, and to be fair it would be hypocritical on her part to blame him for such. She had had her own ideas of fame when she was left as the last person on the Golden Garden excavation. Though she wouldn't have gone to such lengths as her captor.

Yes. Being honest did seem to be the right thing to do. She was going to move her mouth but hesitate as another scenario came to mind.

What would Descole's reaction be? No doubt angry. Possibly even feeling betrayed somehow. Elaine felt a little ill as she realised he would still be mad and take it out on her still. Either thinking she was lying or something else along those lines. And with that sword on his side…

Elaine now felt almost physically sick. She was in a horrible position where she had a high chance of paying for her lack of thought. Maybe even with her life! It was a long shot but not impossible.

The proverb she was possibly looking for was perhaps, 'Stuck between a rock and a hard place. Her new problem had no solution. There seemed to be no escape. And dear God, she had no one to blame but herself.

"Something the matter, Ms. Hawthorne?" Elaine blinked and looked down to Descole who was staring up at her with what was likely a demanding look.

"Wh-why do you-?"

"You look pale." Descole cut her off. "Are you sick?"

"N-no, I… Maybe the weather's getting to me? It's warmer 'ere then in England." Elaine suggested, as she tried to keep her thoughts from showing on her face. Descole simply stared at her before looking back to the monitor. Not speaking another word. Elaine felt some relief and tried to ignore her fears.

She was fine. There was nothing to worry about. It was just her mind over exaggerating. She told herself this repeatedly. She tried to convince herself that the choice she made was the correct one and that she made no mistake.

But yet, the confidence in those words wavered greatly.

* * *

**Alrighty, so I found what I believe to be the perfect voice actors for Elaine in English and Japanese. I left the names in Elaine's profile on my Deviantart account along with a link with a voice sample to give you an idea of Elaine's voice. If you're Vocaloid fans, you may be happy to know that the voice provider for Megurine Luka is Elaine's Japanese voice actor :)**


	24. Close to a Winner

Elaine didn't bother looking at the monitor screen when the time came for the 'competition' to resume. Even if the wolves weren't going to actually kill anyone, that didn't make it any more pleasant to watch. She was just thankful she couldn't actually hear what could have been possible yells or screams of terror. Instead, she sat against the wall with her knees up and her arms around herself. She was mopping or feeling self-pity… Well, maybe a tiny bit of self-pity. But mainly she was trying to think of how this could end.

Going past the scenarios she had already imagined for when Ambrosia failed to rise or when Descole found out what she did, she came up with a few conclusions. Not many of them were pleasant though and resulted in at least one death. A bit drastic, but considering thinking of different outcomes and scenarios was all she could do now, coming up with said possibilities was not too surprising.

Elaine glanced up to Descole as another idea came to mind. He wasn't looking at her right now. She could try and leave now to find the Professor. Since he and Luke were the only competitors she was familiar with personally, they seemed like the best option to go to in seeking help. Or perhaps she should lift the skirt of the dress she was wearing and kick Descole while his guard was down. Even if she got caught shortly after, it felt like it could have been worth it afterwards.

She licked her dry lips and stood up with as little noise as possible. She would move slowly and once close she just had to lift the skirt up just enough for her to swing her leg with ease and no restrictions. After that, she would just have to run quickly and-.

"Up to something, Ms. Hawthorne?" Elaine cringed as soon as he spoke. She was so sure she had been quiet.

"So what if I was?" Elaine scoffed.

"I would say you were doing a terrible job at it." Descole responded bluntly. Elaine narrowed her eyes and looked up to the monitor. Just to see how things were going. So far, no one seemed to have been caught by the wolves thank goodness. But they were by a river not too far away from the castle, with cages hanging up by rope attached to trees.

"Do you think you would have been able to solve the problem here, Ms. Hawthorne?" With three cages and a pack of at least nine wolves, maybe more, Elaine doubted the cages would have been of much use.

"Well I doubt the cages would be enough to catch moving wolves unless they 'ave incredible timing." said Elaine. "So, would the cages actually be a distraction for them to keep them from the real solution?" She frowned when Descole tutted mockingly.

"Ms. Hawthorne, please don't disappoint me. You were doing well up to now." Elaine looked back at the cages just as Professor Layton ran to one of the trees to begin untying the rope.

"… Use the cage to trap themselves?"

"Ah, good. For a moment, I was worried you lost your intelligence."

"If it meant never being 'ere in the first place, I would possibly seriously consider it." Elaine retorted.

Looking back at the screen, she was happy to see that at least two of the cages were moving with small groups of people inside moving away from the wolves. The third one just had people getting on top of it, trying to keep a degree of distance from the wolves. It didn't seem to get any better when one group tripped and their cage toppled, showing the misfortunate group to be Professor Layton and Luke along with the opera singer. Elaine shut her eyes as they began to run. For their sake, she hoped there might have been something else on the island that could have been of some use to them.

"Tsk, tsk, Layton. Whatever will you do now?" Descole asked, a smug look on his lips.

"Something impressive? Ingenious?" Elaine guessed with an innocent tone, trying not to smirk as Descole mouth turned into a small scowl.

"I wouldn't put it past him to do so but I promise that no matter what he does, it will matter not in the end."

"Such promises are made by arrogant men." Elaine noted dryly.

"I am NOT, arrogant." Descole said, with some coldness in his voice. "I am merely stating fact."

"There's no evidence to back it up though, is there?"

The other group that did not trip were making it across the river safely enough, though henchmen were already taking away those who were not in their cage. Strange though that Mr. Whistler was among them. But perhaps he did it on purpose? It wouldn't be too unbelievable, not to mention it would give him a good excuse to leave the others depending where exactly they were going.

It was only a short time later, around when the remaining group in a cage were at the castle and making their way to the courtyard for the next puzzle, that Elaine was proven right about what Professor Layton would do to get to the castle as he somehow constructed a type of helicopter from a barrel and items normally found in some kind of garden shed. She felt a little smug towards Descole, and was sure he was annoyed with this.

But he just seemed amused. He sat in his chair with an entertained smirk, though one fist was lightly clenching in frustration.

"Welcome to my castle, professor." he said, his focus on the screen. A knock was then heard, and the behind Elaine and Descole opened before Raymond entered.

"Mr. Whistler is waiting at the Detragon for you, Master."

"I'll be there shortly." After Raymond left, Descole announced the last puzzle before he stood up from his chair to leave.

"Come along, Ms. Hawthorne." Elaine grumbled under her breath as she followed after Descole. She didn't want to, but with little to no choice, what could she do? Unless he had his guard lowered, she couldn't do any sort of surprise attack and he had fairly quick reflexes. Or at least, quick enough to hardly be touched by the disgruntled archaeologist.

"So, we're going to the Detragon now?"

"You are half right. You, are going ahead to the Detragon to wait with Mr. Whistler, while I go greet our winner. Just go up this corridor and take the first left and second right. After that you should find the chamber. Please don't even entertain the idea of escaping. My men are still about you know." Elaine frowned a little.

"And, assuming this winner does accept the memories of Melina, what will happen to that person afterwards? After Ambrosia?"

"If the girl's memories are still in them, then Oswald will still have his daughter back. So it will be a victory for both sides really."

"And what makes you so sure of this?" Descole didn't say a word. He just turned around and began to leave. Believing she would get no answer, she turned to follow the directions given before she could forget them.

"A father would do anything for his only daughter." The words almost missed Elaine's ears and she turned around sharply.

"Pardon?" Descole however was already a distance away and likely wouldn't look back or respond. Elaine couldn't help but gain a feeling of unease from hearing those words. They seemed so… Personal, maybe? She thought back to that picture she found. The one of the woman named Lucy. Thinking on about her, she did look pregnant, even if not too far along. Could Descole…?

But this was just speculation. There was no evidence other than that picture. She would have to have more evidence or for Descole to confirm her thoughts himself. But the former would be difficult, and the later next to impossible.

With no alternative, the Frenchwoman turned to go to her destination. During which, much to her chagrin, that sickly guilt feeling came to her again. Stronger than. She could have even sworn she heard her conscience actually speak and tell her it wasn't too late to tell Descole about Song of the Sun. If he could have found the other two songs, surely Song of the Sun couldn't be that hard to find?

But she shuck her head to herself. She was doing the right thing being quiet.

Wasn't she?


	25. Near the Final Scene of the Act

Only making some light conversation with Mr. Whistler as they waited for Descole, Elaine couldn't exactly say what she thought of the composer. The fact that his actions were done out of love for his deceased daughter made it a bit difficult to say whether he should be liked or disliked completely.

His actions and willingness to go along with Descole's plans made Elaine cringe, able to sympathise with him in a way. Their situations were different, true, but that didn't make too much of a difference. He hardly seemed like he would have harmed even a worm had he not become desperate after the death of his daughter or agreed to Descole's offer. He was just a poor man who was still grieving and wanted to hold his only child. He was pitiful in a way. She felt sorry for him and would have liked to have told him the truth.

But what then? What good would that do? As long as he had his daughter, he would probably go ahead with everything no matter what. At least that's how Elaine saw it. Plus, how likely was Mr. Whistler going to believe her? It would be her word against Descole's and given whom Whistler has been communicating with the most for the past year, it was pretty obvious whose side he would take.

"So… 'Ow exactly did Monsieur Descole meet you?" Elaine asked, looking at the Detragon. It was strange seeing it up so close. Back on the Crown Petone, something about it just reminded Elaine of Christmas. More specifically, of the idea of Santa's workshop. A bit childish on her part perhaps, but that was what entered her mind. But now, knowing that an unfortunate person would be forced to have memories transplanted into their mind, it just seemed intimidating almost.

"He came up to me a day or two before Melina's funeral." Mr. Whistler replied, though his focus was mainly on the Detragon. He was checking some dials and details and such. "He gave condolences, but gave his offer. I could hardly refuse. Not when I had a chance to have my daughter back."

"And what do you think she would say about this?" Elaine asked, though slightly hesitant. Mr. Whistler stopped what he was doing briefly, before returning to his work.

"I can't say I would know exactly. But I'm sure she would understand." He sounded so sure of himself. Like he genuinely believed his words. Elaine didn't respond to that. She felt that to try and contradict this would make a hypocrite considering the recent doubt that has been crawling in her mind.

"What was Melina like?" The question just popped out of Elaine's mouth. But Elaine was curious. Melina played a big role in all this and Elaine couldn't stop herself from wondering what this girl had been like before her untimely death. Mr. Whistler paused briefly. Elaine, afraid she might have caused some sort of offense, was about to apologise before he spoke.

"She… Melina was a good girl. Very giving and musically talented." He gave a short sigh as he looked to a photo of Melina (who, when alive, had light blonde hair tied in loose ponytails and a gentle smile and friendly look in her brown eyes) that was near glass vials in the Detragon. They showed how much of Melina's memories were still available and out of the six, only two had a golden glow.

"I was proud of her. She was all I had left after my wife died when Melina was a baby. I wasn't there for her as often as I would have liked because of work, but I never intentionally put her last. I always wanted her to come first."

"… Maybe she would understand your actions." Elaine said softly. It felt like the right thing to say. To try and ease his mind to some level. He stared at Melina's picture, stroking the frame of it with one finger.

"Perhaps she would." He agreed, nodding his head lightly. "We would have more time together at least. When I started this, I went through so many girls Descole kidnapped for this. I even used Melina's close friend, Janice."

"Janice?"

"She was the star of the opera." Mr. Whistler paused a moment. "If I get Melina back, I would like to play music with her again. She was a wonderful singer."

"And you will." Elaine looked back to see Descole move towards them at a brisk speed, two wolves at his side. A little distance behind him were some of the masked henchmen, surrounding a young blonde girl who looked to either be approaching the end of secondary school, or close to beginning college. Looking at her carefully, Elaine slowly recognised the girl. She saw an article in the paper about her. Her name was Amelia Ruth if Elaine remembered correctly and if not mistaken, a chess champion.

"Have we, come to the end?" Mr. Whistler had yet to look away from his daughter's photo. Descole seemed a bit annoyed as he stood close by to Elaine, wolves resting by his side. Perhaps Descole thought she might interfere and as such, brought the wolves.

"Everything is going according to plan, as I told you it would do."

"You kidnapped people!" Mr. Whistler turned around, sounding anxious and agitated. "You sold all those tickets! That's no plan!" Descole gave a small chuckle though as he looked back to the approaching girl.

"Well that was my plan." Elaine felt him give her a quick glance. After being forced to live with him for a year, she sort of gained a sense of when he was looking at her. OR maybe that could be felt by anyone. Either way, she had a good idea what that glance was meant to say.

'Don't say a word.'

Amelia seemed a bit unsure as she moved forward, an inquisitive look in her eyes.

"Where are the others? Why am I here alone?" Amelia questioned. Looking at the young girl, Elaine felt that Amelia was slowly becoming disillusioned with the competition. The words of Descole and Whistler not likely giving any more comfort although Whistler at least sounded kinder about it all then Descole ever could.

With another vile of light going out, Amelia was rushed into the seat by Mr. Whistler where soon memories would be forced into her head. Elaine frowned when she heard Amelia's reason for looking for the Elixer. It was for a sickly grandfather with only a month left on this earth. She had to admire her, for not many people would genuinely seek such a thing for another person. In a way, the false hope of immortality being offered almost made the game even sicker than it already was.

When Amelia was grabbed by henchmen after attempting to move away from Mr. Whistler as he held the helmet, and cried out for them to let her go, Elaine had moved before she could think clearly. Well, she tried. Descole had gripped her shoulder tightly and pulled her back as one of the wolves stood up and snarled up at her. All she could do was grit her teeth, hope for Amelia's sake that the entire thing wasn't permanent and that it wouldn't hurt the poor girl.

Elaine was no writing expert. At least not when it came to stories and such. But she could recall one of her friends from her college years who had been an English major had told her of a phrase called, deus ex machina. Where in a seemingly hopeless situation, something happens at the last minute that changes everything. A sort of intervention by fate or a divine force of some kind.

"Enough!"

Elaine wasn't sure who could have been considered the deus ex machina at that moment. The moment Professor Layton could was heard calling for everything to cease. Or when Emmy appeared and kicked away those henchmen.

* * *

**OMAKE THEATRE: Where Layton Characters are chibi-fied!**

* * *

**WARNING! Following may have a small spoiler in regards to Azran Legacy. Read at your own caution.**

**Descole and the Masked Gentleman (With Reluctant Elaine),**

**With their version of the Team Rocket Theme from the Pokémon anime.**

Descole:  
Prepare for trouble!

Masked Gentleman:  
Make it double!

Descole:  
To do bad deeds of villainous intent!

Masked Gentleman:  
To be a God damn, sexy gent!

Descole:  
To get all fangirls, horny and wet!

Masked Gentleman:  
To make that bastard Henry Ledore sweat!

Descole:  
Descole!

Masked Gentleman:  
The Masked G, yo!

Descole:  
The most brillient man alive along with this fool are here!

Masked Gentleman:  
To take everything that you hold dear-HEY!

Elaine:  
I'm Elaine and...  
Fuck this, I'm going.

"Elaine! Get back here!" Descole ordered but Elaine just scoffed and folded her arms.

"Nope! You suck. This cover sucks. This Omake Theatre edition sucks. I'm going 'ome!"

"STOP BREAKING THE FORTH WALL!"

"Can I take this mask off yet? It's hard to break and I can't eat with it on."

"Shut it, Randall!" Descole snapped, making Elaine and Randall gasp. Randall took off his mask quickly, regardless of what Descole might think.

"Dude! You do not just spoil like that!"

"Well, 'dude'," Descole mocked. " Miracle Mask has been out for at least a year now! I think it's safe to say that we all know you're alive and are likely shagging Angela."

"That may be true!"

_Somewhere back in Monte d'Or, Angela was having a feeling that Randall would have to sleep on the couch tonight._

"But you can't just do that to me, bitch!" Randall was glaring at the smug V for Vendetta wannabe. Why did your beloved author compare Descole to V from V for Vendetta? Because Phantom of the Opera seems a bit overdone in her opinion or a bit too obvious. That is not to say it can't be done well, just that while some people can make the joke funny still, there are times where it's just randomly thrown in and just 'meh'. Besides, V and Descole are both intelligent and can fight with swords. Bonuses would be that they both wear hats and that they are both English. How people considered Descole to be French to begin with still puzzles the author because at no point has she ever thought him to sound French, but she can only guess it may have something to do with his name or his sense of style. Because stereotypically speaking, the French are leaders in fashion, followed by Italians.

... Where were we again?

...

AH! Right! Sorry!

"How about I reveal who you are, Des-?"

Descole proceeded to jump kick poor Randall in the stomach.

"It doesn't matter! People will still buy the last game! I'm too fabulous for them not too! I'm too adorable and cute as a child not to! My love for my little brother is too heartbreaking!

"Fan girls will come to me! Begging to be part of my army/soon-to-be harem! We will take down Targent and...!"

While Descole went on with his rant, Elaine appeared, and looked the camera.

"... Stay away from my man." Elaine take out a toothbrush with a sharpened end. You know. For shanking. Like in some prisons.

"I'm serious."


	26. Detra-gigant

Elaine had considered herself very fortunate when Professor Layton had made his timely arrival. Emmy, Janice and Luke and with him as well as Inspector Growsky, along with a little girl Elaine faintly remembered seeing on the monitor earlier that day. The Professor had managed to explain with ease how the Detragon worked. Mr. Whistler was taking deep breaths to calm himself down while Descole looked on with a humoured look. He didn't seem too bothered that Professor Layton had figured out his role in everything. Well, he figured most of it out. The main plot had yet to be revealed. And it would be when a shocking fact to them when it was.

The girl known as Janice was not Janice. Well, the body was her's. But it turns out that all this time for the past year, the entire plan of placing Melina's memories in a host had actually worked. Janice had actually willingly let Melina take over her. It amazed Elaine in a way. The two young women had to have been incredibly close for Janice to practically give up her life for Melina. It was heart-warming actually. Bittersweet but heart-warming none the less.

But of course, that moment was soon forgotten when the ceiling opened with a rumble, revealing the Seal of Ambrosia, just before Descole ran down to grab Jan... Melina. The group unable to prevent it as more wolves appeared and surrounded them. Elaine bit her lip and stood by Janice. The least she could do was try to keep some form of distance between the two.

"What are you doing, Descole?" demanded Professor Layton.

"I'm afraid I need this young lady's voice. If I'm to accomplish my real goal here. To bring Ambrosia back to life. I'll admit that I might not have found the island if I hadn't acquired Ms. Hawthorne, but it was I who found the secret hidden in the seal." Elaine's teeth went a little deeper into her lip. Anymore and it would be bleeding. Descole may have found that the Seal had songs hidden in them, but he still had yet to know of Song of the Sun. She stood a little closer to Melina and gentle grabbed her hand and gave a small squeeze as some sign of comfort.

"Melina, I want to say I'm sorry." Elaine whispered to her as Descole spoke. Melina looked up at her, looking a bit confused though she seemed to have some trust in her.

"Sorry? But why?" she whispered back. Elaine gave a weak smile as she clenched her free hand into a fist.

"Because I may 'ave caused us a big problem."

"… All I needed was for someone to bring those memories alive!"

A blast sounded out and a small storm of cement dust and some smoke flew up, causing most of the people present to shield their eyes. Having shut her eyes tightly, Elaine only opened them when she heard Melina give a small gasp. The ground they were on had broken away from the rest of the castle. She had just barely heard Luke calling out both her name and Janice's before he ran foreword only to be tackled down by one of the wolves.

"Descole, let them go!" Elaine turned around to face Descole, trying to look strong as she forced her personal fears down for now.

"If they're to be saved, Melina must sing."

Elaine pursed her lips as she realised how much trouble she was in. When Descole does find out… Maybe he won't be so mad? Maybe he'll be furious? Maybe he'll pass it off as nothing? Who was Elaine kidding? She was dead. She was so dead! She could already imagine Descole standing over her corpse. Death caused by strangulation or at the hand of his sword, in which case it would be a very bloody corpse.

"This is your farewell performance." Whoever Descole's words were directed to, it seemed oddly timed with her own thoughts. Music then echoed out across the island from the Detragon as Descole began to play Song of the Stars on the organ.

"Sing Melina. Sing a Song of the Sea!"

Elaine's hands began to tremble. She truly was dead.

Melina looked back down at the group, still surrounded by wolves. Holding her head up high, she stepped forward, before she sang Song of the Sea. With both songs together, it created a lovely duet (If that was the right word to use). Elaine was mentally preparing herself for nothing to happen. That was what she suspected would be the end result. But she was sort of wrong. The waters around the island seemed to become stronger. Even a little violent almost. The island itself even seemed to tremble. Maybe Elaine had been wrong about Song of the Sun? Maybe only two of the songs were only needed? Maybe Song of the Sea sung with Song of the Sun alone would have an opposite effect. Sort of like an on and off switch. But with music. Elaine possible would have chuckled as she imagined such a ridiculous way to turn lights on and off had she thought of it at some other, more appropriate time. Descole stood by the edge of the platform when the songs finished. His arms held to embrace an invisible friend.

"Ambrosia, will rise again!" He cried out loud. Hearing falling stone, Elaine looked back towards the castle and paled as she saw some of the chamber begin to collapse. Professor Layton and Luke just barely making it with their lives, making Elaine release breath she didn't realise until then she had been holding.

The trembling shortly stopped. But nothing rose. Descole looked confused at first. But that soon changed to agitation as she slowly made his way away from the edge.

"Why… Why won't it rise?" He almost seemed to growl it out before pointing sharply towards Melina. "Again! Sing it! Sing!" Elaine tried to stop her hands from trembling. She had seen how angry Descole could get. This was just the tip of the iceberg. But Melina did as Descole ordered as he repeated Song of the Stars on the organ. But nothing happened. There wasn't even a tremble. Almost as if Ambrosia decided to mock Descole, and if that was the case Elaine had to give some applause towards the lost kingdom. But the brief silence was broken as Descole gave a sharp yell and slammed his hands on the organ keys.

"Why… Why… Why…" Elaine swallowed before she stood a little in front of Melina. If Descole did do something, she could at least try to keep the poor girl from his wrath. But Elaine still hadn't expected what he did next.

"You!" Descole in front of Elaine and had grabbed one shoulder tightly with a slightly looser grip on her neck. Elaine was almost too petrified for even mild stutters to escape her mouth. Elaine didn't think it possible, but he seemed even angrier then when she had gone into his office.

"You said, YOU said, that the seal translated to mention those songs! You promised me!"

"A-and it does!" Elaine managed to force the words from her throat in a rush, taking shallow breaths since fear made it nearly impossible to breathe. It didn't get any easier when Descole's grip began to tighten and become more painful than they already had been.

"Let her go!" Melina tried to tug Elaine away but the scientist was stronger and pushed Elaine against the side of the organ, banging her head sharply against the hard material.

"Then why is it," Descole began, as if Melina had not spoken up, "That Ambrosia is not here? Hmm? Are you trying to make a fool out of me?!"

"Th-there was trembling! That proves that it does work, it's just not complete!" The sentence came out of Elaine's mouth faster then she could carefully choose her words. Elaine realised her dire mistake when Descole's grip seemed to get even tighter, almost choking her. Elaine hands instantly went for the one on her neck to try and lessen the grip, but it wasn't working. Either because of his own strength or her fear messing with her ability to think straight. He breathing deeply and Elaine briefly wondered if she would indeed die by strangulation.

"Not, complete? Care to explain?" Descole tone was sharp and Elaine swallowed nervously. Inwardly praying that if she did suffer for her choice, that it would be as painless as possible.

"Th-there… I might 'ave… Omitted something."

"What?!" Decole hissed. Elaine was begin to choke now, though it was not enough to keep her from speaking. Albeit her words were broken up a little.

"There… Might 'a-'ave bee-been… anot-another song." Elaine rasped out.

"And you didn't tell me?! All this year and said not a single word of this?!"

"Y-you found the other songs s-so surely you can find this one!" Elaine was panicking. Her free hand was trying to find something in reach to defend herself. Her words were obviously poorly chosen as Descole banged her head against the side again.

"Yes! During the year before now, you stupid woman!" Elaine's hand found something to hold onto and an idea quickly came to mind. Gripping her hand tightly, she lifted both her legs up and sharply kicked Descole in the stomach. Luck seemed to side with her since Descole had not expected that and stumbled back. Releasing Elaine from his hold. Elaine stumbled to the ground but forced her legs to move back towards Melina who looked incredibly frightened.

"Are you alright?"

"J-Je vais bien." Elaine felt her neck and winced a little. No doubt there would be bruises there for some time. Maybe some weeks. A dark, disturbed chuckle came from Descole, and both women looked at him with unease as he made his way back to the organ keys.

"Well… If the door to Ambrosia will not open, by this music… I will tear it down!" He slammed his hands down on it, and levers came out. The same kind from the Specter-bot in Misthallery. Elaine's stomach dropped when the platform glowed a light purple, continuing on towards the castle. The stone broke apart as the castle rose up high, revealing a hidden monstrosity of machinery, which had a saw a pincher limbs. Descole stood at the keyboard, a maddened, feral grin on his face.

"Ambrosia! Will be mine!"


	27. Curtains Close

Descole just seemed to disturb Elaine more and more with how irrational and desparate his desires could cause him to act. Stuck on top of his machine with him alongside Melina as several trees were being ripped and thrown about certainly didn't boost her faith in the masked man. Or herself either, considering that this current situation was (indirectly at the very least.) her fault for not telling Descole of Song of the Sun in the first place. She still felt her reasons of payback for her kidnapping and the rest of the excavation team back Misthallery leaving.

Trying to pull Descole away from the controls had occurred to Elaine. It seemed like an obvious solution, but there was the problem in regards to the fact that Descole was the only person who knew how to control this thing, and no good could come from her or Melina trying to take over the controls. Heck, she doubted Professor Layton would have been able to figure it out.

Elaine looked over the side, grimacing at how far above the group they were. The idea of jumping off with Melina to escape had crossed her mind. But the chances of grabbing onto a tree branch on time or landing in water just seemed slim. Laughable even. Though the one who would be laughing would no doubt be Descole. Though then again, maybe the two women could have taken the risk. Surely jumping into water from such a height couldn't be fatal, could it? Then again, with the speed they would be falling at (That would increase if Elaine was correct), that might not have been the best idea she could think of.

Elaine was brought away from her thoughts when she felt a tug on her wrist and looked to Melina who was pointing down. Elaine followed her finger, directing towards the helicopter-like machine that Professor Layton and his friends had made to get to the castle, with the Professor and Luke inside.

"Merci, Dieu." Elaine murmured under her breath, a tiny hopeful smile playing on her lips. Not only may the Professor be able to stop Descole, but Elaine may finally be able to get away from the mad man! Said man had noticed Layton as well as she heard him ask aloud,

"Layton? Interesting. You actually want to oppose me with that heap of junk?"

"They do say less is more." Elaine mused out loud with a playful smirk, not looking away from her and Melina's potential rescue. Her heart skipped a beat when the Professor and Luke just barely dodged a pincer. She was already doubting what Decole told her as to where he stood with murder. She looked up when Melina turned around and ran towards Descole, who was cackling at the near attempted murder.

"Melina, wait!"

"Stop it!"

Melina had grabbed onto Descole and tried to pull him away from the controls, as Elaine ran over to help. Descole however growled in frustration and threw her off of him. Whether he had meant to or not, he used enough force that caused her to roll towards the edge. Forgetting everything else, Elaine quickly ran after her to try and grab her before she could fall.

Elaine didn't make it on time, however Melina was able to grab onto a thick wire that was strong enough to hold her. Elaine over the edge as far as she could without falling off herself, and stretched her arm out.

"Melina, try and see if you can grab my arm!" Elaine said, trying to keep the desperation out of her voice. Melina looked up at Elaine and slowly let go of the wire with one arm. She tried to reach up towards Elaine's hand. Elaine thought that maybe it was going to work since their fingertips brushed against each other briefly before Melina's nearly lost her grip on the wire. Elaine frowned when she realised she couldn't simply grab her arm. Maybe if there was another person with them, other than Descole, someone could have tried to pull the wire up while the other reached out for Melina.

But then they came. The pincer nearly knocked Professor Layton and Luke out again, but Luke jumped out and grabbed onto wiring. However, much to Elaine and Melina's terror, he slipped and fell, ending up on the saw.

"Don't worry there, Melian and Elaine! I'm coming for you!" Elaine could just barely hear him call out to them before the saw started up, and he was forced to do a quick trek across the wires. Surprisingly, he was actually quite nimble. Back at Misthallery, Elaine recalled Luke's mother mentioning how his stomach never seemed to be full with the amount of food he was capable of eating.

As he got closer, the sound of a drill could be heard. Elaine saw one snaking out from somewhere on the machine. She had a sickening feeling of who its target was, and quickly stood up and ran towards Descole. Maybe she couldn't completely stop him, but she could try and stall. She grabbed his arms and held them back as best she could.

"Damn it, wench! Let go!" Elaine ignored his snarl though. Not like she could make him angrier then she already did. She gave a sharp intake of breath when Descole freed one arm and elbowed her sharply in the side of her neck, before shoving her off of him and onto the ground. He glowered at her as he put one hand on a control. Possibly the one for the drill.

"If you'll stop being so audacious, I'd appreciate it Hawthorne."

A sharp crash sound was heard. Looking up, she could see the drill shooting up, the flying machine the Professor had still been flying on the tip of it, before it exploded. The explosion was bigger than one would have thought it would be for something so small. But then again, if it was made from materials in a shed, it might have had something flammable to power it. That didn't stop the look of horror on Elaine's face though.

Pieces of barely surviving wood and metal began to shower down. The echoes of the explosion slowly dying down, having made their brief appearance known.

As did the slight grunt of the Professor, as he pulled himself onto the surface, with the aid of a pipe.

"You just keep coming." Descole mused, drawing his sword before rushing towards Professor Layton. Metal clanged as Layton improvised for his lack of sword for the pipe. Elaine backed away, not wanting to be caught in the middle, and to make sure Luke and Melina were alright. Luke was holding onto a wire a little closer to Elaine, so she was able to help him up first before Elaine had Luke pull at Melina's wire to pull her closer to the edge for Elaine to bring up.

"Thank you." Melina gave a sigh of relief.

"I think its Luke we 'ave to thank. I wouldn't 'ave been able to pull you up if 'e didn't help, now would I?"

"Just, trying to be a gentleman, Elaine." Luke said, giving a bashful smile as he tilted his blue cap.

"Well for an award, 'ow about I give you a kiss when you're older?" Elaine lightly teased, smiling at Luke's blushing face.

"That won't be necessary. Really."

"'Ow about the both of us give you a kiss on the cheek then?"

"H-hey!" Melina giggled as a slightly flustered Luke went beet red. Elaine's smile lessened though when she looked back to the sword fight. She was surprised how well the Professor was able to fight even when he was clearly at a disadvantage. He probably trained at some point in life. Probably not recently though. More reluctantly, Elaine had to admit that Descole was just as skilled and his physical skill showed when he was able to jump seemingly impossible heights, and at the same time in a graceful manner.

"Hmp. Amateur."

"I wonder about that Descole." Professor Layton mused as he began to make his way towards the organ of the Detragon. "Both you and Elaine were right in regards to the puzzle in the seal, though Songs of the Sea and Stars are not enough. Your mistake however was that you only looked at it from one angle." He lifted the manuscript up, showing the sketched seal on it. "If you reverse Song of the Stars, you get the third melody."

"Song of the Sun." Elaine stated, as Descole was clenching and unclenching his fists, literally shaking with rage.

Professor Layton began to play both songs, Melina singing Song of the Sea alongside. Unlike Descole's attempts, something actually happened.

From the water close to the shore, a green glow appeared, fading to a golden one that stood out sharply against the dark waters of the night. They started off as small blots on the water, but as the music continued, they continued to spread out until merging together. Soon, aged remains of buildings rose from the waters. Torrents flooded out of windows and doors, ready to dry out once the sun came out again. The ruins of Ambrosia stood proudly in shallow water. A beautiful sight to the eyes of Elaine. She, Melina and Luke looked at it in awe.

"Layton!"

They looked back to the organ where Descole was trying to slash his sword at the Professor. Damaging the controls in his rage and momentary lack of ration.

"Ambrosia is mine! I found it!" But just as those words were spoken, the Detragon began to malfunction as a result of Descole's actions on it. The controls went out of control and as a result of that, the weapons his very creation began to turn on itself, making the damage worse. There was a smaller explosion from the organ, causing the men near it to stumble back. The Professor fell on his back, but Elaine noticed how dangerously close Descole was heading towards the edge.

She wasn't sure why she did it. Her body just seemed to do it before she could comprehend anything else. Her hands grabbed the skirt of her dress to lift up a little to make it easier to run. When Descole began to fall back, Elaine was already dropping to her knees to grab him. Her hand shot out for his leg, her hand just brushing against the soft fabric of his pants as he fell. Giving out a loud, angered cry.

Elaine didn't move. She was frozen. Her lip trembled as her arm still stuck out. Refusing to move back in, it did however shake. It wouldn't be until several hours later that she would realise that she had actually cried Descole's name before his fall. This… This couldn't, actually be happening. Could it? Descole had angered Elaine. He had taken her with no consent. He pretty much stole a year of her life from her. Making her family undoubtedly worried sick with grief, and giving her miserable ideas that she would be his captive forever. Translating Azran glyphs until one of them died…

Elaine would have liked some kind of retribution. But she didn't want Descole dead! She didn't want him to fall God knows how high. She… She didn't want him to die!

"Elaine!"

He… It was Descole! The arrogant git who apparently had more money than he knew what to do with if this 'Game for Eternal Life' nonsense was anything to go by!

"Elaine!"

He was intelligent and skilful! Didn't he have some sort of plan for this?! If he was so smart, why weren't there any damn railings! Then that stupid man could have grabbed onto something!

"Elaine, please!"

Elaine was startled when her shoulders were grabbed, and she was forced to look at a very worried Professor Layton. He seemed just as disturbed by Descole's fall as Elaine was, but was not in the same state of shock. She was also starting to notice the fire that was steadily building up.

"Elaine, we have to go! This machine is going to explode soon!"

"R-right." Elaine let him help her up. Her shaking hand didn't let go though, not trusting her mind to lead her to safety for the moment.

The Detragon had another explosion as they near a cliff on the island. Pieces of the deadly machine were already breaking off and falling either on the ground or into the water to be lost forever. Professor Layton, Elaine, Luke and Melina ran towards the edge of the platform as the Detragon began to sink into the water, managing to jump onto the ground just as the Detragon exploded and fell on a spire of one of the ruins, stabbed in its chest before slowly sliding down it and into the dark waters.

Elaine looked to the waters, still trembling from the entire ordeal even as Emmy arrived to the scene with the others, and attempted to stand up only to stumble back down. Still in shock as to what happened to Descole. A few seconds earlier and she might have grabbed him, resulting in either her saving him or him unintentionally dragging her down with him. She felt sick, and for a reason uncertain to her, a tiny lone tear began making its way down from her eye.

She just wanted to go home.


	28. At Scotland Yard

Elaine just wanted to go home. Go home. Have a bath. Maybe eat something if she was hungry. Go to bed and try to find out when she could return to work as soon as possible. They would possibly insist on her taking time off but seeing how she wasn't in work for the last year, Elaine wanted to snort since she was away from her job long enough.

But of course returning to mainland with the people on the island, some of whom were the henchmen who had not managed to flee on time, Elaine was subjected to questioning as was everyone else at Scotland Yard. Her more so seeing how she had actually lived with Descole for the past year and thereby the closest thing to a clue as to where his hideaway was.

"For the last time, I don't know where I was for the past year." Elaine exasperated as she sat in what she thought might have been the interrogation room. The member of police in front of her, a tan and dark eyed young man with platinum blonde hair and a body structure similar to her older brother, had been the one to question her since police were busy with the other people and duties and such. "'E never said where we were and I 'ad to wear a blindfold whenever I was brought out."

"I understand your frustration, Ms. Hawthorne." He said back. "But if there was anything hidden in his house, it would be best to find it on the off chance it ends up in the wrong hands. Or worser, depending how you looked at it."

"Well I'm sorry, but I can't say where the place was other than it being near some woods Monsieur…" Elaine paused. A little annoyed with herself, she rubbed some tiredness from her eyes. It wasn't even late. Only a little before midday and she was tired. "I'm sorry monsieur, but I forgot your name."

"Detective Inspector Bloom." He answered shortly.

"Well Detective Inspector, as I said I don't know where I was for the last year other than with a mad man." Elaine said.

"If you're certain." He was trying to keep the annoyance hidden from his voice, though Elaine could just about sense it. "Well, was there anything you spotted that might give a clue towards the identity of Jean Descole?" Elaine frowned as she thought back to the office incident. The picture of that woman, Lucy. Lucy. S. Elaine considered mentioning it. Bringing it up could lead to some sort of breakthrough. 'Yes' had been on the tip of her tongue.

"No." Elaine shuck her head. "There was nothing of the sort."

"Such a shame." Bloom said dryly. "Did he ever mention any plans for after Ambrosia?"

"No." Elaine said again. "I didn't even know what would 'appen when 'e did find Ambrosia." Detective Inspector Bloom gave a small nod before he made a note in the notebook he brought with him. The final note down, he stood up.

"We'll be contacting your family now, Ms. Hawthorne. Is there anyone specific you want us to contact first?" Elaine thought it over briefly before answering,

"My parents. They're closer to London."

"We'll contact them then. Please wait here." Elaine probably would have made a snide remark along the lines of, 'what else am I to do?' had she been in a better mood. She just nodded as the Inspector left the room, leaving the Frenchwoman to her thoughts.

Why didn't she mention the picture? It would have been the right thing to do, wouldn't it? Elaine softly drummed her fingers on the table. Then again, what was the right thing to do? She rested her chin on her hand as her elbow leaned on the table. She hated being in this position. Of all the people why her? Still. She was free now. Able to return to her life. However…

Elaine folded her arms on the table and rested her forehead on them. Why did Descole have to die? She never wanted him dead. Maybe suffer to a certain degree, but anything beyond that was unfathomable in her mind. It just wasn't in her. But yet, her choice to not mention Song of the Sun led to his death. He wouldn't have gotten frustrated and attempt to force Ambrosia up. He wouldn't have attempted to kill Professor Layton and damaged his own creation. He wouldn't have fallen off the side to what was a certain death for him.

While it wasn't intentional, Elaine had actually killed Descole in a way. Sure, Professor Layton had discovered Song of the Sun and unintentionally made Descole loose reason, but Elaine had been the one who withheld information. Descole's death was he fault and the fact that she couldn't even save him as he fell was going to haunt her. Possibly forever.

"Ms. Hawthorne?" Elaine looked up to see Inspector Detective Bloom come back in. "We've called your parents. They said your brother would come to pick you up. Apparently the moment they told him you were here, he had already prepared to leave."

"I see." Elaine mused. A smile coming to her face in what felt like forever.

"If you'll wait outside…"

The chair weren't too comfortable, but Elaine hardly noticed as she glanced to the doors ever few minutes. Waiting for her brother to come. She wasn't too surprised that Philippe left the moment he knew she was here. He had always been a protective kind of brother. Not too over the top, but his care for Elaine was clear.

"It's good to see you're alright, Elaine." Elaine looked up to see Professor Layton, Emmy and Luke. Elaine gave a small smile.

"Merci. So 'ow is Mr. Whistler?"

"I think he'll eventually come to fully accept Melina's death." Professor Layton answered. "The police are going to charge him, but I think they might be a little lenient towards him given his reasons and how he was manipulated. Not too much, but some."

"I see."

"Are you waiting for someone?" inquired Emmy.

"My brother. After that, we'll probably go back to mère et père. They might call my Madeline to join us as soon as she can."

"Do you want us to wait with you? Until he arrives?"

"Merci, but I don't want to take up your time."

"Nonsense. We'll be more than happy too."

"Yeah, we don't mind." Luke chirped, agreeing with his mentor. Elaine smiled in appreciation.

"So where's Janice?" Elaine asked when they sat down by her.

"She wanted to stay with Mr. Whistler as a support until they question him. She said she would be going home afterwards but would try to visit Melina's grave." Elaine nodded. The wait was mostly silent. A little talk here and there. Elaine was feeling mildly better now than earlier, and for a moment began to giggle.

"I just realised something."

"Oh?"

"I'm going 'ome!" Elaine said with a tiny grin. Before another word could be said, she heard a familiar voice she could never forget.

"Ellie!" Elaine looked towards the direction of the voice just in time as she was pulled into a tight bear hug. Her brother Philippe, a man just a few years older than herself who had a dark, stubbly beard and a mop of dark hair on his head tied back into a stubby ponytail, was mumbling in rapid French how much she was missed as well as a promise to kill the man who stole her.

Elaine instantly hugged back. Feeling safer then she had been all year.


	29. Family Home

It was strange to be in her old room in her parents' house, in the little village of Marigold. Even after two days there, she was still pinching herself each morning and evening that this was real. Not a dream or hallucination or anything of the like. The moment she walked in through the front door with her brother just behind, she was brought into a tight hug by both her joyous father and crying mother. Elaine joked to herself that the fact her ribs didn't break was a small miracle.

Elaine had wanted to call work and see how soon she could return. Her family however were insistent that she rest though, though Elaine kept making excuse to try and be alone with the house phone or to even touch it. It got to a point where her mother had taken the phone out and hid it somewhere.

Elaine still had yet to find it. From what she had been able to do, she was sure that the search could be narrowed to somewhere outside the house, or perhaps the attic. It could have been the latter since the small key hook where the key to the attic usually was found was vacant last time Elaine noticed it.

But right now, it was night time. Elaine laid awake in her bed. She stared up at the ceiling with an apathetic look before she sat up and looked out her window into the back garden. It was interesting to see a pond in it now. There wasn't one when Elaine first came here at fifteen, but her mother really wanted there to be one. Said it would make the garden look more tranquil or something. Elaine couldn't recall what her exact words were. She had never been the gardening type.

Tomorrow would be another day of rest. To Elaine, it would be another day of being forced to think. To remember. To feel mentally sick and some slight paranoia. If she was back at work, none of that would be problem because she would be too busy working to think. It was perfect logic and a good solution in Elaine's opinion.

Still. She would get to see her cousin Madeline tomorrow. Once she got her train here from Monte d'Or. Elaine didn't even need to think too hard on how she looked because surprisingly enough, there was a bit of resemblance between the two cousins.

The only differences was that Madeline was taller and her long, curly hair was just a few shades away from a pale blonde. There was also a few light differences in their faces but it was mostly the hair that enabled people to tell them apart with ease.

Elaine leaned her elbows on the windowsill and looked up at the night sky. It was perfectly clear, showing the tiny white dots of stars, though the moon was but a mere slit of light in the darkened sky depths.

_Creak._

Elaine turned her head sharply to her door, tensed but at the sight of her father's figure she relaxed. He was in his late fifties, with some wrinkles starting to show on his face though mostly under his blue eyes. His once barely tameable dark hair was close to complete grey.

_"Sorry. I wasn't sure if you would be awake or not._" The family tended to speak French in the house when it was just them. A way to stay connected with roots back home in France.

"_Don't worry. I wasn't too tired anyway, daddy._" Elaine's father, Christophe, walked carefully into the room. Possibly preparing to leave if Anne, Elaine's mother, showed up.

"_Still thinking about what happened?_"

"_How can I not?_" Christophe sighed as he sat on Elaine's bed and put a hand on her shoulder.

"_I know there isn't anything I can do to make it all better, Princess._" Elaine smiled a bit. Even as an adult, her father would call her that. In private of course.

"_I'm just glad to be back though, daddy._"

"_Aren't we all?" _He gave a slightly cheeky grin. "_And yet here you are wanting to go back to work. You're turning into a terrible workaholic."_

"_It'll help me forget and move on._" Elaine insisted. "_How am I supposed to do that if I'm doing nothing but being forced to think about it?_" Christophe sighed as he rubbed the back of his head.

"_Princess, you know we care about you…_"

"_I know…_"

"_We're just concerned about how all of this will affect you._"

"_That doesn't mean I can't work._" retorted Elaine.

"_After everything that happened I'm surprised you aren't put off archaeology._" her father remarked.

"_How could I be? I love it too much to simple just stop_" Elaine scoffed. It was quiet for a moment before Christophe spoke up again, though sounding hesitant.

"_Well… If it means that much to you_… _There might be a way. But I'll only tell you if you promise two things._"

"_What are they?_" Elaine asked quickly. Ready to grab any chance to go back to work.

"_First of all, take this week and next week off. Even if you're going back to London._" Elaine frowned a bit. She just wanted to go back to work already. But if she had to make this sacrifice, so be it.

"_What's the other thing?_"

"_You have to see a therapist._"

"_What?!_" Elaine couldn't believe it. A therapist? What good would that do? Elaine wanted to forget, not tell everything to some person who was being paid to listen to her talk!

"_I'm afraid you don't have much choice sweetie._" Christophe sighed. "_When I was out earlier, I borrowed a friend's phone to call your boss._"

"_Chappy?_"

"_Yes._" He paused for a minute. "_How much does he love cats?_"

"_A lot, but you were saying?_"

"_Ah, yes. Well, I told him that you wanted to come back soon, and he is willing to let you do so._"

"_That's great!_"

"_Well, yes. But he thinks it would be best that you see a therapist first. Or at least see one twice a week before work._" Elaine grumbled under her breath as she folded her arms.

"_I'm guessing the two weeks off was his idea too?_"

"_No, that was your mother and I._" Elaine gapped as he father smirked and tapped her nose. "_It's a deal you're going to have to accept, Princess. Otherwise, you'll be waiting much longer to go back._" Elaine frowned as she thought her options over. Either way, she would be stuck with something miserable. At least with the therapy option, she could be in work. Christophe gave a light chuckle and patted her head.

"_I think I have a good idea what your choice is. But let's leave the rest of the talk until tomorrow, yes?_"

"_Yes, daddy._"

"_Good girl._" He gave Elaine a tight hug before he stood up. "_Try to get some sleep. Good night, Elaine._"

He then left. Leaving Elaine alone in her room again. Think it over, she briefly considered if maybe the time off would be good for her. She looked out the window one final time before lying back down.

No. Elaine still disagreed.


	30. Nightmares

Elaine could never throw away that dress, or the coat and belt that came with it. Maybe it had been from Descole for disguise purpose of for her to try and dress more formally as he put it, but she just didn't have the heart too. Her mother and cousin had suggested giving it to a charity shop of some kind. Her brother had suggested throwing it out or better yet (In his opinion) burning it. Elaine's father didn't give a direct opinion, though she suspected he might secretly have been supporting Philippe's idea.

But Elaine did neither. When she returned to her home in London, she put the dress on a hanger along with the coat and hung it on the door of her wardrobe. Maybe Descole's reasons for giving it to her were himself. But it was still a gift of sorts when you thought about it. A gift Elaine couldn't part with.

She missed her house. Her Georgian style, London townhouse. It might not have a garden to sit in or plant flowers, but it didn't bother Elaine. She just bought some flowers every now and then to put in the kitchen, living room or sometimes her bedroom. She was proud of the small decorations here and there. One or two knick-knacks Elaine thought would fit nicely into house, or slightly pricier ones, such as an art deco style painting in her study of a jazz orchestra.

There were of course a model of an artefact or two. They may not have been the real thing, it would as close as she could get to a genuine sabre-toothed cat tooth or papyrus scroll.

Comfort was what Elaine felt in the house. Comfort. Familiarity. That was what she needed now. That wasn't to say she didn't really feel that way back at her parents' house. It was just that this was her own home. Where she had lived the last several years. And it was good to be here again. No matter what. She had called Chappy a little while after coming home, and after confirming that it was her father who had spoken to him a while ago, agreed to see a therapist if it meant she could come back to work. It felt like a blow to her pride, but it meant going back to work, so who was she to complain? It only meant that she was on the right path to getting her life back on track, where it was before!

But, he still haunted her thoughts. Even if just on the edge. Descole.

Elaine couldn't understand completely why. But she had a good idea. It was her guilty conscience making her suffer for having a hand in Descole's death. It tore Elaine on how she wanted to feel. She wanted to tell herself that it wasn't her fault and to not feel any guilt. To pretend he never existed. But no. Her guilt did exist as had Descole and kept prodding her and prodding her.

Her appetite had waned to a point where it was starting to feel like a chore to eat bread rolls even, and had to force herself to eat so she wouldn't start starving and losing weight and cause people to ask questions. Her sleep was no better. She could barely sleep at night, but when she did, those dreams were far from pleasant.

_Elaine was just walking through the woods. A scarlet cloak on her back. She raised an eyebrow at it. A bit 'Little Red Riding Hood', much? Being alone in the woods almost made her roll her eyes, though she did notice something peculiar. Where was her basket of goodies or medicine? Didn't Little Red usually have a basket with either or both in it to give to her grandmother? _

_Perhaps she had already gone there? It was the first thought in Elaine's mind, but that only led to the question of why she didn't have an empty basket._

_With no other option, Elaine began to walk in the direction she was facing. It seemed like the way she was meant to go. It was quiet, dark. No sound except for hooting owls or night time creatures. She thought she saw a fox briefly._

_Pit. Pat. Pit. Pat._

_Elaine turned around. She had heard something behind her. But there was nothing. Elaine gave a weary look but continued her walk._

_"I'm not scared. I'm not scare." Elaine muttered to herself. She repeated the mantra. It was all that came from her lips, non-stop._

_"Oh, but I disagree my dear~." The chuckle that followed made Elaine feel chilly as she turned around. Descole came out of the woods. Wolf ears sticking out from his hat and a tail from under his cloak. It would have been a funny, maybe (In the words of those more brave) even cute, sight. But it was dark, and Descole was smiling, his teeth literally sharp as Elaine paled._

_"C-cher Dieu…" Elaine murmured as she stepped back._

_"Why so frightened, my darling Red?" He cooed, taking long steps towards her. "It's only dinner time after all~." Elaine's pupils shrunk, and for a moment she seemed almost statue-like as she froze. But common sense slapped her and she instantly turned around. Running as if the Devil was at her heals. It was a bit literal in this case considering how you looked at it._

_Elaine could hear his laughter as the chase went on. She refused to scream. To yell out. That would only give her away if she managed to hide from him. She wasn't even sure if he was behind her now, but fear kept her from looking. _

_She only blinked when she suddenly hit into someone and fell down. Elaine looked behind her sharply but saw no sign of Descole._

_"Are you alright miss?" Elaine looked up to see some sort of woodcutter. He seemed young. Maybe a little more than her. And he was kinda cute too._

_"I… I got lost and I…"_

_"Don't worry. How about I help you out? I know the way." Before Elaine could respond, this stranger grabbed her arm and began leading her down the path. He looked cheerful, but Elaine still felt uneasy being so close to him._

_Eventually, they made it too a cabin. It seemed familiar. Was it meant to be her grandmother's cabin? Elaine frowned. Why was she here? Still, she let the woodcutter lead her to the front door. Elaine gave three tentative knocks on it before speaking._

_"Erm… It's me grandmother. Sorry for being late?" Elaine said in a questioning tone. But there was no response. Hesitant, Elaine slowly opened the door and looked in, only for her to take a sharp intake of breath._

_Descole laid on the floor. Cut up and bloodied. The axe laid on the floor._

_Elaine began to hyperventilate. How did this happen? Why?_

_"Tut, tut. Scared of your own handiwork?" Elaine turned around to the woodcutter, or rather Descole. He didn't have his mask on, but the shadows covered the part of his face where his mask usually was. He smirked at Elaine before tugging something out of Elaine's hand._

_The bloody axe._

_"'O-'ow…"_

_"I do apologise for what happens next, Hawthorne." Descole drawled. "But quite frankly, I do not like being betrayed in such a manner!"_

_"I… It was an… I didn't mean for you to…" Elaine backed away. Trying to come up with an explanation. She eventually stumbled and fell into a bloody puddle. Descole took sweet time approaching her before pausing, and then kneeling down to face her._

_"Such a shame we part ways like this. But you have no one to blame but yourself." Elaine felt his lips pressed against her ones briefly. She tasted blood and when Descole pulled away she saw a thin trail of blood sliding down one corner of his mouth._

_"Don't fret darling." He mockingly cooed as he stood up, raising the axe high. "It'll be over soon~."_

Elaine had screamed she sat up quickly in her bed. Her heart was racing. Beads of sweat were on her forehead. Just a nightmare. Her conscience mocking and tormenting her. She looked to her bedside clock. Only two in the morning. Still time to get back to sleep before she would have to wake up later to return to work.

Descole would never have done such a thing. Would he? Elaine wasn't so sure now. She swallowed as she glanced towards the dress on her wardrobe door. Something about it seemed to laugh at her somehow. Easing herself back down on her bed. Elaine shut her eyes.

Her first mental note was to stop reading so much Stephen King before bed.

The second was to call an old college friend of hers'. Darcy hopefully still worked with death records. Maybe she could try and find who Lucy was.


	31. Talks

Elaine liked Dr. Breannan when the reason for them to be in the same room together wasn't being done. He was capable of being charismatic and while they didn't have anything in common too much, he was still a good talker. However when it came to those appointments that Elaine grudgingly went to, she loathed him deeply.

She wasn't sure how she had a love-hate feeling towards the therapist, but she did. Come to think of it, she wasn't too sure if she even fully liked him. Tolerated felt a bit more accurate. It felt wrong to consider she liked him only to drop down to tolerating, but that's how it felt to her whenever she enters his office every Tuesday and Thursday morning. They would have a friendly talk, before they would have to get to the reason for her being here. Although for both of them it was for different reasons. Dr. Breannan so he could try to help Elaine after her ordeal of being held captive for a year, and Elaine so she could return to work.

"So, how would you have described the relationships in the house?" Elaine raised a questioning eyebrow as she sat on the worn couch. Dr. Breannan, a man only about ten years older than herself (Though he looked a little older), sat in a just as worn armchair across from her.

"Relationships?"

"You said he had a butler, yes?"

"Well, yeah."

"So how would you describe the relationships in the house?"

"I don't see what that 'as to do with anything." Elaine muttered as she folded her arms. "But I never 'ad any problems with Raymond. I didn't talk to 'im too much but we did every now and then. I guess we were a bit more then neutral towards one another."

"And, Descole?"

"I… Guess the two of them got along…"

"No, no." Dr. Breannan shuck his head. "I meant between you and him. How would you describe your relationship to him?"

"'E kidnapped me, what do you think?!" Elaine sneered as she glanced to her watch. Just a half hour to go, and she could continue on her way to work.

"Well frankly, I'd like to hear you say it." This was said in a dry tone. Elaine rubbed her face before sighing.

"I don't know… It was… Difficult, maybe?"

"Difficult how?"

"I don't know. I just felt that way. I'm just guessing."

"Did he ever tell you anything personal about himself?" Elaine thought this question over in her mind before shaking her head. He never revealed anything personal. Everything she knew was just simply a case of her being at the right place at the right time (Or the opposite depending on the situation and how you wanted to view it).

"Non. As far as I recall, 'e never did. Not surprising though." Dr. Breannan raised an eyebrow.

"Care to explain?"

"'E's a wanted criminal. Why reveal personal details?" Elaine scoffed.

"Do you know if he had any family?"

"… No."

"Were you intimidated by him?"

"I wouldn't use that word." Elaine mumbled. "I just… You 'ad to be careful around 'im on occasion."

"So you were uneasy around him then?"

"Can you ask something else?" Dr. Breannan sighed in frustration, and Elaine couldn't help but feel slightly smug, even if there was a little guilt. Right now, she would be happy to admit to having a, 'spitfire' attitude as some would put it.

"Fine. Did you ever feel a sense of, say… loyalty to him? Did you ever feel anything positive towards him?" Elaine gave a small frown as she thought the question over.

"… 'Onestly, I'm not too sure."

When Elaine stepped into her office less than an hour later, she smiled at the familiarity. One wall an entire bookshelf of books while the opposite wall had a large corkboard with so many notes, details and copies of diagrams pinned to it that the light brown of the board could only be seen in tiny spaces here and there. The filing cabinet next to it was stuff with papers. The only other furniture was a small couch for guests against the wall under the corkboard along with a coffee table in front of it and a gramophone next to it, and of course her desk (Which had several books, papers and both used and unused pens littered across it) which was against the wall across from the door, under the window.

That thought kept Elaine from moving in at first. She hadn't remembered until now that both she and Descole had their desks positioned under windows. But she pushed that thought aside and stepped inside and closed the door behind her. She only paused to look at herself in the mirror to adjust her white shirt, and making sure loose hair hadn't fallen out of her semi-bun hair. Satisfied, she sat at her desk and brushed her inky blue skirt down.

She just sat there at first. Enjoying being back in one of her personal sanctuaries. It wasn't fancy. But being somewhere to call her own was something.

Elaine grabbed a few papers she had to look at. Her young assistant Joseph had apparently taken care of as much paper work as he could have. Strange he wasn't here yet. He was usually here before or just a few minutes after she would arrive. It didn't really matter though. Right now, she would just look over the papers. Just to make sure everything was in order of course. Not to mention if she found anything that had yet to be taken care of, she would take care of it.

It was good to keep her mind busy.

An hour later, and her phone rang. Elaine nearly jumped. She really should have put a little jazz on. Then maybe the ringing wouldn't have shocked her so. She also should probably move the phone to the coffee table and not her desk.

"Bonjour?" Elaine spoke after picking the receiver up.

"Elaine? It's Darcy." Elaine smiled. It was good to see her friend received her message.

"Darcy, it's good to 'ear from you. I take it you got my message, oui?"

"You said you wanted help with something, so can you tell me what it is?" Darcy always was straight to the point.

"Oui, I was wondering if you could look up a name for me. Maybe compile a list and send it to me."

"Of someone who's died?"

"You still work with the dead, don't you?" Elaine wasn't trying to sound rude. But it just sort of slipped.

"I do, but why do you need my help for exactly?" Elaine paused briefly to remind herself of the lie she had prepared beforehand.

"We're expecting a model of an artefact, but the creator died at some point. I don't know much about 'er other than 'er name being Lucy. S."

There was a small silence. Elaine wondered if Darcy was taking notes or just unsure.

"This… Sounds kind of suspicious."

"I can assure you, there is no foul play of any sort."

"But why ask me?"

"It's too complicated to explain." Elaine replied shortly. "But can you do it?"

"… I'll… See what I can do. It might be a bit tricky getting the details out to you. But I'll get a list and send it to you. Any idea when Lucy died?" Elaine paused before nodding to herself.

"I think… Somewhere in the last five years? That sounds like a good enough timeframe."

"Okay." Darcy mumbled, a faint scratching of pen on paper heard. "I can't guarantee anything, but I'll try. Any other information I can add?"

"… I think she might 'ave been pregnant. I'm not too sure."

"Right. Got it. I'll send it you in the post, yes?"

"Oui, thank you. 'Ave a good day." Elaine put the receiver back down. A part of her felt a bit wrong to be doing this. Like maybe she should have just told the police officers in Scotland Yard about the picture of Lucy. But something just kept her from doing that. So this was the next best thing. She wasn't sure why she was so interested in Lucy. It was just simple curiosity. But Elaine had a determination to find out.

Not much time had passed when her phone rang again. Elaine looked at it first before finally picking the receiver up for the second time that day.

"Bonjour?"

"Hello, Elaine. It's Professor Layton speaking." Elaine was surprised to hear the Professor's voice. She didn't recall giving him a phone number.

"It's… Nice to 'ear you, Professeur. No offense, but 'ow did you get my office number?"

"I called Chappy, and once I explained my reason for calling he was happy to help."

"Ah."

"Honestly, I'm quite surprised you've returned to work now. Not that I'm trying to suggest anything, but I would have thought you might leave it a little longer."

"Nonsense. Work is good. Keeps me busy. Keeps me from thinking."

"If you say so." Elaine could faintly tell from his voice that the Professor didn't sound too sure of those words. "But… If you ever wish to talk, myself and Emmy are willing to listen. We could meet over tea?"

"Merci, Monsieur." Elaine replied. "That does sound lovely." There was a pause before Elaine spoke. "So… The reason you called me is…?"

"Ah, yes." The Professor's voice sounded a little grave and Elaine's once reasonably nice day was already feeling like it was evaporating. "I thought it would be best to inform you. The police have been searching over the island of Ambrosia for the last couple weeks, on the off chance there might have been someone else there. They were also on the lookout for Descole's body."

"And…" Elaine sat up a little straighter.

"… From what has been and not been found, evidence strongly suggests that Descole had survived the fall."

"What?! But… 'Ow?!" Elaine was surprised that she hadn't screamed or yelled.

"From the looks of it, he either managed to grab onto one of the tree branches or fell into a river. It's hard to pinpoint the exact location he fell in. But it would appear that he is very likely alive."

"… I see." Elaine said calmly.

"Is there anything I could do for you, Elaine?"

"… When do you and Emmy want to meet up for tea?"

"Elaine?"

"Petit Luke can join us as well." Elaine added as on hand went through the papers and such on her desk until she found her planner. It might have been out of date now, but no good wasting paper.

"Well… Would next Thursday suit you?"

"Oui. It's perfect, oui." Elaine said as she made a quick note of it.

"Alright, but are…"

"I'm sorry, but I 'ave to go now, Professeur."

"… I understand. So I'll see you next Thursday then?"

"Oui. Thank you for calling. Adieu." Elaine hung up the phone and leaned back in her chair.

She was strangely glad to hear Descole was alive. She had felt responsible to some degree for him falling off the Detra-gigant and to know that she didn't have blood on her hands felt like a huge relief for her conscience. That worry was gone.

But now was a new worry. Descole was alive. He was somewhere out there. Likely plotting his next scheme, with a side plot that possibly involved making her pay. Elaine would be more surprised if Descole didn't seek some sort of vengeance on her after what happened. Elaine looked out her window as she clicked her tongue. Maybe she was worrying herself too much. What were the odds of Descole finding out where she lived exactly? Just as he never mentioned personal details, neither had Elaine so if Descole was going to track her down, it would likely be a challenge.

But he seemed like the type of man who enjoyed a challenge. All for the glory of conquering it.

* * *

**OMAKE THEATER Theatre: Where Layton characters are chibi-fied!**

* * *

**Chapter 1 of Elliella**

Once upon there was a very pretty French girl named Elaine. But since this story is meant to be something like Cinderella, she will be called Elliella. Anyway, she was a very pretty girl with a widowed father. Her father, wanting to have a woman in his life and a mother for his daughter, decided to marry a gorgeous blonde woman named Antonia.

However, it was only on the wedding night that he realised his mistake. Antonia was actually a man named Anton. A very, very pretty man he was. Elliella's father supposed he should have seen the first clue when 'Antonia' had appeared completely flat chested, even in that unusually tight wedding dress. Either way, the shock was enough to kill him. Anton was pissed because for one, he did get any ass and since he wasn't into necrophilia (It was SO last year), he ended up horny and grumpy and unable to find cheap male prostitutes.

True, he legally got all the money, but now he was saddled with Elliella! He already had two brats from his previous, totally-non-black-widow-style marriages, Claire and Angela. And what was worse was that none of them were as fabulous as himself!

So, because he was totally thinking in a smart way, he had Elliella wear servants' clothes and had the other two dress up nicely in hopes they would become mean and that the meaness would turn them ugly! Obviously that didn't work so it just left Anton annoyed and pissed.

"ELLIELLA!" Anton shrieked. "I want a pedicure, manicure, my eyebrows trimmed, my files on people I stalk sorted, the horses fed, the mice caught and skinned so I can make little coats for my finger puppets project, the cheats for the puzzles in the first Professor Layton Trilogy, Belgium chocolate and Fungi the dolphin to be put in the pound!" Elliella stared at him.

"… Um… I can do everything except the mice and the dolphin."

"WHAT?!"

"Well that mouse thing is just creepy and Fungi is in Ireland, and I'm pretty sure it would die in the pond."

"JUST DO IT!" Anton stomped out, his dress swishing as he did so.

That's right. Anton has taken to wearing dresses. Don't act so surprised. You knew deep down he was into it.

Elliella sighed as she got a phone to book Anton's appointment at the local salon. She was going nowhere NEAR his toes!

"Is, um… 'Mother' alright?" Claire asked wearily as she entered the room.

"I think it's ''er' time of month." Elliella muttered as she waited for the salon to answer.

Meanwhile, in the castle owned by the royal family.

"DAMN IT! THAT'S THE THIRD TIME THIS MONTH!"

King Bronev was getting pissy at his three prince sons; Descole, Randall and Hershel. In order of oldest to youngest.

"HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO BE A GRANDFATHER IF YOU THREE KEEP SAYING NO TO POTENTIAL BRIDES?!"

"They kept touching me. I didn't like it." Hershel said.

"I DON'T CARE!"

"Why do you want to be a grandfather anyway?" Descole questioned in a bored voice.

"The same reason as any other parent. So I can adore cute, little kids that are related to me, but not have to pay for expenses and take too much responsibility." Bronev replied simply. Randall pouted as he folded his arms.

"Well I'm sort of trying something like that." Bronev rubbed his face in exasperation.

"Having sex and then dumping every potential bridge, does not count Randall. Not unless you plan to get into polygamy and marry all of them."

"I think that's illegal in this country."

"Then find one damn bride and stick to her!"

"Can we go? I'm bored of this nonsense and I want to go back to my lab." 'Where I'm working on something to destroy you, you selfish, old fu-'

"That's it!" Bronev slammed his hands the arm rests of his throne. "There's going to be a dance! If you don't each find a girl by the end of that night, I'm going to marry you off to…" Bronev paused before hissing. "_Them!_"

"Them?" The three princes questioned, giving looks between 'What is he on?' and 'Are you serious?'

"Yes. _Them._" Bronev pointed to red curtains which were then drawn back by a servant. All three young men backed away in horror. Behind the curtains were a tank filled with Mary Sues of all kinds. Some which belonged to entirely different fandoms. They were squealing, slobbering and pressing their breasts against the glass of the tank.

Even Randall, the playboy of the three, was terrified.

"Mary Sues. Specially broken out of fanfiction prison just for this." Bronev strode over, and placed a single hand on the glass. "No matter how horrible the person, they will be too horny to care and will be determined to have sex with that person if it's the last thing they'll do." Bronev looked to the quivering princes. Well, Hershel and Randall were quivering. Descole was standing very still, eyes looking at the tank wearily. "I think the message is clear. Marry a girl you meet at the next ball. OR them." Bronev jerked his head towards the tank. "The choice is yo-"

But before Bronev could finish, one of the crazed girls' hands broke through the glass and grabbed onto Bronev's hair. Bronev proceeded to scream like a little girl.

"OH GOD IT'S GOT ME! RESCUE ME FOR CHRIST'S SAKE!"

"… Screw you. I'm going back to my lab." Descole drawled before turning to leave. Randall and Hershel soon followed suit.

"YOU SELFISH FUCKS!"


	32. Assistant

Elaine was surprised with how calm she was able to be despite knowing that Descole was somewhere out there. Maybe it was the fact she only stuck to familiar pathways when walking somewhere (She could drive, she just never bothered buying a car), or perhaps the way she would list all logical reasons why Descole would NOT come after her again. It could have also had something to do with the fact she had a precaution when in her home. Whenever answering the door for instance, she would hold a hatchet (That she used for cutting up some turf for her fireplace) just out of sight of the visitor at the door until she felt safe. Even if the door was open a crack or as far as the door chain would allow if Elaine wasn't planning on letting them in. A little drastic, maybe. Elaine could sort of admit to that. But it gave her a sense of security, so that's all that mattered.

She didn't have to use such precautions at work. Well, she was more or less forced to. She doubted she could have brought a hatchet into work without being questioned and possibly suspended or worse.

"Ms. Hawthorne?" Elaine looked back at her office door to see Joseph come in. He was a few years younger than Elaine, and shorter too. His face was a little effeminate too, a trait that according to him was caused by having a twin sister. Joseph was carrying a teacup while a few papers were held under his arm, and handed it to Elaine with a smile.

"Sugar no milk. Just how you like it."

"Merci." Elaine murmured as she took the cup and sipped from it. "Are those papers for me?"

"Oh, yeah." Joseph held them out. "They're on the Mauryan Empire. There were some copies sent in today so I thought I'd grab one for you."

"Very thoughtful of you. Who is it by?"

"A Professor Sycamore is what it said." Elaine skimmed through the first few pages before looking at the back on pausing. There was a small biography on the author and above it a headshot of Professor Sycamore. He didn't look much older than herself, and had red-brown eyes with red framed glasses and brown hair that curled a lot at the ends. Something seemed off though she couldn't put her finger on it.

"… Did we ever meet 'im?" Elaine asked as she tilted her head to the side. There was something about Professor Sycamore's (Admitably in Elaine's opinion, very handsome) face, but she just couldn't place her finger on it.

"I don't think so. Why?" Elaine looked at the picture a few more minutes before closing the papers and putting it down on her desk.

"Nothing. My mind's just messing with me I suppose. But merci on bringing it to me. I'll read through it later."

"Oh, and I passed Mr. Wilisier on my up here, and he wants to ask you about the date we're loaning some of the Celtic artefacts to the National Museum in Wales?"

"I think the men taking the artefacts should be 'ere on Wednesday." Elaine answered. "I think then they'll officially be on display in Wales on the following Monday."

"Do you want me to go tell him that now?"

"Don't feel you have to right away, but if you don't mind, it'll probably ease his mind. You know 'ow 'e tends to over think and worry over things." Elaine chuckled as Joseph gave a sheepish smile.

"I'm guessing Mr. Wilisier wouldn't be too happy if he knew you said that now."

"Only if 'e finds out. And if you value your job, 'e won't." joked Elaine. Joseph gave a small chuckle before he left the room.

Elaine thought that she had a fairly good work relationship with Joseph. She was reasonable enough with him workwise in her opinion, and he did his job well. He was punctual, polite. He was quick to memorise details with reports and such. He even brought her tea sometimes even when she didn't ask. Admitably, he tended to be a bit reserved with new people at first, but had grown comfortable enough with Elaine during their work time together.

He was someone Elaine had grown to have a trust in.

While Joseph was a good worker, Elaine never expected him to be a hundred percent perfect. Complete perfection was bland, pointless and dull according to her mother, and she understood it clearly. But Elaine was still surprised when Joseph came in half an hour late one morning. On the rare times he was late, it would only be by about five minutes.

"Sorry about being late Ms. Hawthorne." Joseph said sheepishly as he came into Elaine's office. "The traffic was really bad today."

"That's okay." Elaine waved it off. "I was just going to get some tea. Would you mind sorting these papers into the filing cabinet for me?"

"Not at all." Joseph said with a cheerful smile as he took the papers Elaine handed him. She gave a quick thank you before she left. She felt in good spirits as she walked. Nothing bad had happened. Everything was going smoothly. Like life before Misthallery. Before Descole. She had over reacted. He would be too busy plotting his own schemes then to give her a second thought. No. There was nothing to fear.

Returning back to her office with tea for herself and Joseph, she was surprised to see Joseph put her receiver down.

"Was there a call?" Joseph looked back to Elaine, looking a little startled for a brief moment.

"Y-yeah. From someone called Darcy."

"Oh, what did she say? Oh, I got you tea too."

"Thanks." Joseph took his cup. "She said she found what you were looking for and that you should get it sometime this week."

"Très bon." Elaine murmured as she looked through some paperwork she was looking through earlier.

"If you don't mind me asking, what are you expecting?" Joseph asked as he glanced out the window.

"… It's… Nothing much really. Just a list of names."

"Names?" Joseph was frowning now. Looking a bit unsure. Elaine didn't notice however as she flicked a page over

"Oui."

"For what?"

"There's something I'm looking into. I can't recall one person's name except for Lucy, so I thought maybe a list of names might help me recall."

"… I see." Joseph murmured. He seemed a little weary, but Elaine either brushed it off as nothing noteworthy or was just too absorbed in her work to notice. "Is it important?"

"In my opinion, oui." Elaine wasn't really lying so far. Just… Tweaking a bit and not going into great details is all. She hadn't noticed when Joseph looked wearily between herself and her desk.

"So, is it coming to your house or here?" Elaine looked up from her papers. That question got her attention.

"I always have my mail delivered 'ere. It saves me some time. You know that." Joseph cringed a little.

"S-sorry. I guess I forgot. You were… Missing for so long, I guess I…"

"Don't worry about it." Elaine told him. His explanation sounded reasonable enough. Perfectlly understandable if Elaine said so herself.

The week had gone on normally enough. Not too much excitement except for a possible excavation dig somewhere in Scotland. Elaine was feeling tempted to go, but wasn't entirely sure if she could right now after the Golden Garden. Maybe if there was a dig sometime next year she would sign up for it.

However, on a Thursday morning, Elaine was happy to see a thick envelope that she just had an itching feeling was from Darcy. Elaine sat at her desk to open the envelope, using her silver letter opener. She then stood and walked over to her small couch as she read the small letter that she spotted first.

_Elaine,_

_It was a bit tricky to get this to you, but I did. Hope it was worth it._

_Darcy._

Elaine then sat on her couch and pulled out the thicker papers. Elaine blinked with how many Lucy. S' or names Lucy was an abbreviation for there were. There were about twelve pages and almost too many names on each page, including their dates and cause of death. She knew this wouldn't be easy, but this…

"Are you alright, Ms. Hawthorne?" Elaine looked up to see Joseph peering in from behind the door. Elaine waved him in.

"Oui, oui. I just got that letter from Darcy."

"And how does it look?" Elaine was a bit surprised by how anxious Joseph sounded to know what was on the paper. But she replied back,

"More names then I expected. Much more."

"That's a shame." Joseph replied, slightly apathetically. "Maybe… How about I look through those names for you? You could take a rest. Maybe get some tea?" Elaine raised an eyebrow.

"Shouldn't I be telling you to get the tea?" Joseph frowned. Blushing a little as he appeared to overstepped a line. However, Elaine quickly smiled and stood up. Handing the list to him.

"'Ere you go. I won't be too long."

"Not like the list will go anywhere." Joseph commented dryly as Elaine left.

Everything had been going well. Elaine was happy. Content. Relaxed. Felt nothing negative unless you count tiredness after a day at work. Then she saw how it came tumbling down.

"Ms. Hawthorne, there's a phone call for you." Elaine was just passing reception when the receptionist, Ginerva, held a phone up towards her. Elaine was a bit startled but accepted the phone.

"Bonjour?"

"Ms. Hawthorne? It's Joseph."

Elaine's heart stopped.

"J-Joseph?"

"Yeah. I've been meaning to call you all week, but I was really busy."

Elaine glanced down the stairs she had just come down.

"I got this letter telling me my sister was kidnapped. I went to the place it told me to go, but when I didn't spot find her, I decided it was a hoax and went home. But then I found another letter, and it told me the first one was a test that this one was genuine. It said to go straight to this one place and to call a number when a week was up, and…

"I feel so stupid. Violet was alright. I know this doesn't make up for not being in all week, But I'm okay with my pay being docked or whatever. I was stupid for acting irrational and I-."

"Don't worry about it." Elaine said quickly, eyes still on the stairs. "You'll still get your pay."

"Really?"

"Oui." Elaine said as she stood a little straighter. "Why didn't you call my office phone?"

"I tried but I can't get through. Maybe the plug go knocked out?"

"Maybe." Elaine muttered. "I'm sorry, I 'ave to go, something's come up."

"That's alright. I'll be in-." Elaine put the receiver down and took off her black high heels to carry them before rushing back upstairs, briefly cursing her choice of footwear to work. She was thankful no one was out to see her running through the hall like this. They would think she had gone mad!

Elaine arrived outside her office door. Putting one heel on the ground, Elaine held the other with the heel out. Intending it to be a defensive weapon. Grabbing the door handle, Elaine took a deep breath and flung the door open, her shoe raised high.

The room was empty.

Elaine looked at corners to make sure of this before picking up her other shoe and closing the door behind her. Locking it.

Taking a proper look around her room now, she realised that her windows were wide open, letting in the cool breeze while on her desk was something Elaine had not seen in ages.

Her short blue scarf.

It had been so long since she had seen it in Misthallery before Descole kidnapped her that she had forgotten about its existence entirely. Elaine looked out the window again before shutting it tightly. She gripped the scarf in her clenched fist. Shaking at first before slowly moving to sit on her couch again.

Descole had been her. This entire week, Descole was in her presence, disguised as her assistant. She was caught between anger, fear and a feeling of stupidity. She should have known the moment he entered her office half an hour late. She should have noticed the small details here and there.

But she didn't.

* * *

**OMAKE THEATER Theatre: Where Layton characters are chibi-fied!**

* * *

**Chapter 2 of Elliella**

Elliella was scrubbing the floor after Anton dropped a small pot of nail polish on it and only told her after it had fully dried into the floor. She was grumbling, cursing her step'mother' and questioning how her father could not have known Anton's gender. It was obvious to her at the time and she had been maybe… Eight? Nine? At the time. One or the other, it didn't make too much difference.

"Do you want some help?" Elliella gave a grateful smile to her two stepsisters, Angela and Claire as they came in.

"Oui, that would be nice."

"Well it's marble so have you tried scrapping it off?" Claire asked as she knelt down as she started picking at the bright purple stain. Elliella wanted to slap herself silly when she saw that was much more effective then scrubbing.

"Merci. I 'adn't thought of that."

"STOP HELPING THE HELP, YOU STUPID GIRLS!" All three women winced as Anton stomped in. He was wearing one of those old west saloon dress, with a big peacock's feather in his hair and sparkly blue earrings.

"We were just-."

"Shut it, you Britney wannabe!" Anton snapped at Angela.

"If she's Britney, does that make you Kim Kardashian?" Elliella asked in an innocent tone. Anton gave a sharp gasp.

"No, he isn't." Claire shuck her head. "I believe Miley Cyrus would be a better comparison." No, Anton gave a sharper gasp here.

"What about a love-child of Miley Cyrus and Kim Kardashian?" Angela suggested. Anton gasped so much from the insults that he promptly fainted.

"That was anti-climactic." Elliella remarked. Then there was a knock at the door, and Angela answered.

"Can we help you?"

"Yes, I'm…" Clive the messenger boy frowned in confusion as he looked inside. Three hot girls and a man in a dress on the ground. The last was definitely not what he was expecting. "Is he okay?"

"He's fin-." Angela was promptly shoved out of the way by Anton. His got boy senses had tingled in… places, just enough to wake him up and see the now uncomfortable looking Clive.

"Well, hellooooo~." Anton purred as he tried to lean closer and closer to Clive. "What have we here? A scrumptious looking young man with a fine ass coming to my home, to see me? Must be my lucky day~."

"Er, no… Sir." Clive as hesitant to use sir, since he wasn't sure of Anton's state of mind. "I'm actually here to announce a royal ball-."

"A ROYA BALL?!" Anton squealed louder than humanly possible. "WHERE?! WHEN?!"

"Tomorrow night!" Clive said quickly, desperate to leave now. "It's to help find Princes Descole, Randall and Hershel a bride each!" Anton stared at Clive, his mouth gapping.

"Oh. Em. Ef. GEE!" Anton glomped Clive as if he had given Anton a cure for an illness. "BEST. NEWS. EVER!" Anton then smothered kisses on Clive's face before shoving him out and closing the door.

"Well, girls. Guess who's becoming the future queen~." Anton smirked at them all. Elliella was tempted to make a joke there, but felt that it was too easy. "I'm going to marry one of those princes, and then I'll be the top dog, bitches!"

"But, wouldn't that mean trying to marry the eldest one if you want to be queen?" Claire asked in confusion.

"I plan to marry Descole! If not him, then one of the others and I'll kill the rest off. Then I'll kill the king, become official queen and kill the husband I marry. Unless it is Descole."

"… And why are you telling us this?" Angela asked, dumbfounded as to why Anton would admit to such a heinous act.

"Duh, because no one will believe you sillies." Anton giggled and skipped out. Singing about all the things he would do as queen, from creating a real life Willy Wonka style chocolate factory to opening gays bars.

"Well… I hope you two 'ave a good time." Elliella told her stepsisters. "I doubt I'll be able to go."

"Nonsense." Claire scoffed. "He never said you couldn't go. All we have to do is lend you one of our dresses."

"Really? Merci!" Elliella felt excited now. She would get to have fun for once. No Anton to stop her! That dress wearing creep could suck it!

An hour later, all three women were in pretty dress. Angela's was a peach colour, Claire's a pale blue and Elliella's violet.

"Alrighty, let's go-!" Anton had just come in, wearing a really gaudy lilac coloured dress with bows and nothing covering his butt. How such a dress existed is still a mystery. Either way, he had stopped speaking the moment he saw Elliella.

"… What are you doing?"

"Desole?" Elliella asked, not sure what the problem was.

"… You're wearing purple." Anton said calmly. "You can't go."

"Wha-?"

"YOU CAN'T GO! WE CAN'T BOTH GO IF WE'RE WEARING THE SAME COLOUR! EVEN IF THEY ARE DIFFERENT SHADES!"

"I'll just cha-."

"No time!" Anton snapped and ripped the skirt of Elliella's dress, much to her chagrin.

"What the 'ell?!"

"HEY! That was my dress!"

"Shut it, Angela! We're going! It's time for me, to meet destiny!" Anton declared before shoving Angela and Claire outside with him, and slamming the door shut and leaving Elliella with nothing but a ruined dress.

"… Well fuck."


	33. Friday

Elaine considered calling the police. That was something she should have done. It made sense. Her kidnapper had tricked her assistant into not going to work and took his place. But when had taken a few deep breaths to calm her shocked nerves, she decided against doing so. What real evidence was there? It was pretty much just her own words and those letters Joseph had gotten could have been written by anyone. But those were minor reasons compared to her main one. If her family found out, they would probably insist on her leaving work. Something she would not be having. She would just have to make sure Joseph kept quiet about the incident. Maybe a small pay raise might be a good incentive?

Thinking further on, Elaine wanted to hit herself for not realising it was Descole until it was too late and giving him that list. She had tried not being so hard on herself, but it failed. She should have known and she didn't. It was all her own fault. The only positive things she could think of was that nothing else was stolen from her office when she had done a quick examination of it. It was bad enough learning that some government officials or whatnot were currently in control of the Golden Garden and that the notes she had made had to be given to them during her year absence, without her losing any other work.

Two things were clear from the incident though. Since Descole took the list, he clearly had no intention of Elaine finding out anything about Lucy. Secondly since he left her scarf in her office, it seemed like he wanted her to know he was there. It also brought up the question of why he had her scarf for so long and only now giving it back.

But it didn't really matter now. She would just have to try and get through this. Maybe if she kept being as careful as she had been doing (Maybe even a little more), Descole might just forget about her and leave her alone. A naïve belief, but a belief none the less.

Elaine continue going to those blasted therapy sessions. Going along with the questions and maybe telling a lie or two if she felt it necessary. If continuing going to work wasn't a reasonably good incentive for her, Elaine would have stopped going ages ago.

But tonight didn't feel like she should worry. It was a Friday night and she was in her normal Friday night routine. A nice hot, scented bubble bath while music played in the background. A warm fire ready for her to sit in front of on her couch as she read her book and ate some Chinese food once it was delivered.

Currently, Elaine was at the bath stage. Her door open to allow her to listen to Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald's, 'Cheek to Cheek' coming from her study as the scent of vanilla drifted through the room. Elaine hummed along lazily. Eyes closed as her toes played with the chain of the plug. She hadn't done this in ages since she came home. But after the recent incident with Descole, she just felt that she needed to treat herself. She even left an open box of milk chocolate a co-worker gave her within arm's reach to indulge herself before she would have to leave to avoid wrinkles, and of course order her dinner for the night.

Eventually finished with her soaking, Elaine just threw on a nightdress and wrapped a dressing gown around herself before drying her hair off and coming downstairs and going through a few papers by her phone, found the menu of her usual Chinese takeaway.

Sliced beef with mushroom and some spring rolls sounded good tonight.

When the food did arrive, all there was for Elaine to do was to crack open a bottle of red wine, pour herself a glass and eat every two sentences or so of her current book, 'Under the Dome'.

Elaine raised an eyebrow as she heard her phone ring? Who would ring at this hour? She wasn't really expecting any calls. Probably family though. Elaine took a sip of her wine to help wash down some of the food still in her mouth before she got up to answer her phone.

"Bonjour?"

"_Elaine, how are you?_" Elaine smiled lightly as she heard the light voice of her mother.

"_I'm good, mum. How's daddy?_"

"_He's fine. He's back from visiting your brother in Wales._"

"_You didn't go?_"

"_Do you remember Mrs. Doubhire? She got food poisoning and she was supposed to be watching her grandchildren today so I offered to help her look after them._"

"_Ah._" Elaine nodded

"_Now I have a question for you, Elaine Marie Hawthorne._" Elaine wanted to roll her eyes at the teasing tone. Whatever it was she had to tease Elaine about, it must have been big since the only other time Elaine's full name was used like that was when she did something bad as a child or teen. "_Why didn't you tell me you had such a handsome friend?_"

"_What do you mean?_"

"_Jack Kennedy._" Elaine's mother told her, in a tone that made the answer sound obvious. "_A colleague of yours' at work._" Elaine began to frown. She didn't recall anyone at work being called Jack, let alone a Kennedy. Well, there was one Kennedy, but that one was a woman and Elaine barely knew her.

"_Er, could you describe him?_"

"_About your father's height. Blonde hair, brown eyes. Has an admitably cute rear._"

Elaine would have chuckled a bit at that. She and the rest of her family were pretty sure that her mother was a bit of a closet pervert. But she was growing a bit concerned since she still could not recall any Jack Kennedy's. Not wanting to jump to conclusion, Elaine decided to play along.

"_So, er… What is Jack doing there?_"

"_He wanted to drop off get well cards and some flowers, and I offered him a cup of tea since he came all the way out here to see you. Apparently he was in Egypt for the last two months and didn't see you back at work._"

"_I see._" Elaine felt her heart begin to race. It couldn't be… No, she had to make sure. "_So, er… Is he still there?_"

"_He just left for the bathroom._" Elaine probably wouldn't have said anything even if he had just left. No need to cause her parents worry.

"_Could you ask him something for me real quick when you can?_" Elaine winced as she could have sworn her mother gave a disapproving look.

"_I think you can ask him yourself when he gets… Ah, here he is. One moment._" Elaine wanted to say so many curse words in so many languages.

"Hello, Elaine. Good to see you well." Elaine narrowed her eyes as the chipper voice. If she didn't know the person behind it, she would have thought it genuine. Instead, she just doubted its sincerity.

"'Ello, Jack." Elaine greeted politely. "'Ow are you?"

"I'm doing fine. Had a bit of an accident a little while ago, but nothing too major." Elaine noticed a subtle emphasis on 'too', and winced a bit.

"I'm sorry to 'ear that."

"Yes, I'm sure you are." He said it in a way to sound joking or playful. But Elaine was sure it was meant to be sarcastic.

"Anyway, I wanted to ask if you got the list I 'ad a few days ago."

"Apologies, but I'm afraid it got destroyed. One of the incompetent assistants fault. But that list is replicable, yes?" Elaine pursed her lips. She doubted she would ever get another copy. From what it sounded like from Darcy, she could have gotten in trouble for sending her the list. Elaine couldn't ask for another copy.

"Not for me, non."

"Shame." Elaine didn't believe it was for him. "By the way, your mother's snacks are delicious!"

"Oui. They are." Elaine agreed dryly.

"Well it's been nice talking to you again, Elaine. But I have to leave now. But one more thing."

"What?"

"… I'll see you again." This part was said a bit more quietly, and he spoke no more. Elaine stood still, her mouth slightly agape as she was unsure what to do.

"_Elaine?_" Elaine snapped out of her thoughts when her mother spoke, and she cleared her throat.

"_Sorry about that, mum._ So you're alright?"

"_Of course I am._"

"_Good._ _Um, I'm sorry but I 'ave to go now._"

"_I understand. Talk again tomorrow?_"

"_Yeah, that would be perfect._" Elaine paused. "_… I love you, mum._"

"_I love you too, sweetie. Goodnight._" Elaine dropped back on her couch when she hung up her phone and held her head. He was just messing with her now. She had a fairly good idea of what his plan was exactly. He just wanted her to feel that there was truly no safe place from him. He knew where her parents lived and not too long ago had been disguised as her assistant for a week.

It seemed Descole would never give her peace.

* * *

**OMAKE THEATRE : Where Layton characters are chibi-fied!**

* * *

**Chapter 3 of Elliella**

"Now remember, you twerps." Bronev growled as Descole and Randall looked bored and Hershel looked a little uncomfortable. Bronev was wrapped in bandages after his escape from the Sues. "If you don't find a girl to marry, I'm going to marry you off to the Sues. At least then, with their horny nature, I'll be guaranteed some grandbabies!"

"Yeah, yeah." Descole grumbled as he adjusted his clothes.

"Um, don't you think you're being a tad… unreasonable?" questioned Hershel before Bronev bitched slapped him.

"Shut up, and get hitched!"

"Hey, don't hit him!"

"Yeah!" Both Randall and Descole were quick to defend their youngest brother and help him back up. Bronev however ignored them and plugged his fingers into his ears and walked away.

"LALALALALA, I'M NOT LISTENING OVER THE SOUND OF YOU MORONS MAKING ME A GRANDPARENT!"

Meanwhile, back with our main character, Elliella was sitting on the stairs. Back in her servant clothes as she tried to fix Angela's dress. She grumbled bitterly over how stupid Anton was and how much the pompous idiot needed to suffer. Then there was a faint yellow glow in the room, and before Elliella stood a young brunette woman wearing similar clothes to that of Tomb Raider's, Laura Croft. But in various shades of yellow.

"Hi there, Elaine." The woman chirped. "I'm your Badass Fairy Godmother, Emmy." Elliella stared at her.

"… Badass Fairy Godmother?" Emmy hummed yes.

"Indeed. I'm here to get you to your ball, pronto!"

"… But, I don't…"

"Fear not!" Emmy declared. Striking a dramatic pose. "Badass Fairy Godmother has the solution to your problems!"

Emmy pulled Ellliella up and dragged her outside into the night air.

"Now first, the dress!" Now, Badass Fairy Godmother didn't have a wand. Instead, she had a magical foot. So her right foot glowed before she kicked Elliella right in the chest.

"OW! What the… 'ell?" Elliella saw she was now in a gorgeous, emerald green gown, with her hair in a semi-bun with a tiara on her head. On her feet were a pair of silver shoes.

"… Aren't they meant to be made out of gla-"

"Now for your steed!" Emmy interrupted cheerfully before grabbing a mouse. She threw it up and as it came down, she kicked it to the ground, where it bursted and turned into…

"Inspector Growsky?" Elliella asked in surprise. "I didn't realise you would be 'ere." Said inspector huffed and folded his arms.

"Well, I wasn't given any dam speaking lines in the main story, damn it! So this might be as close as I'll ever get!"

"… Alright. So, 'ow is 'e my steed?" Elliella asked Emmy wearily.

"Because I said so." Badass Fairy Godmother responded before picking Elliella up and dropping her on Growsky's back. "Now this will only last until five minutes to midnight. If you don't leave before then, you may be caught in your normal attire."

"Alright, but I still don't think a piggyback ride is the bes-AGGHHHHHH!" Elliella interrupted herself as she grabbed onto Growsky for dear life as he began running. He could break the laws of nature and run faster than anything that is normally faster than a human. Car, train, ship. He could run across water you know. He broke the laws of physics and at one point had gone back in time far enough to see how the world was created.

He couldn't remember it though.


	34. How It Began

Elaine had been looking through her things in her office. Well, looking through and tidying up at the same time. … At least, there was an attempt at the tidying up. Elaine was getting too distracted by this and that to really focus on the tidying aspect. It made her wonder briefly how on earth exactly she managed to keep the rest of her house reasonably tidy, yet her desks would nearly always be guaranteed to be messy.

She got distracted by things such as a box containing a Celtic broach. It had lost its original shine many years before even Elaine's grandparents were born. But it still brought a smile to her face. The very thing that had sparked her interest in archaeology to begin with.

Elaine had been fairly curious as a child. Always asking questions when they came to mind, no matter how random or absurd they would be now that she was an adult. It was that curiosity that would lead her to discover and soon fall in love with archaeology.

_Eleven years old, Elaine was still living in Burgundy, France. Just a little outside a small town. The distance was just enough for Elaine and her brother to walk in everyday for school and such. It was spring and the weather was warm enough for the two not to even consider bringing coats with them._

_That of course changed later on. The weather, being unpredictable and unreliable as it is, had steadily leaned towards bad that day. It was barely noticeable at first, but then it just seemed all of a sudden like the dark grey clouds in the sky appeared out of nowhere._

_Walking alongside the road after her classes had finished for the day, Elaine had given a brief but weary look towards the sky. Only wearing a cream summer dress, she didn't want to be caught in a sudden shower. She was on her own since Philippe had to go to his soccer practice. You would think that with potential rain they would cancel for the day. Instead, they just decided to use the gym._

_Elaine wasn't scared of walking on her own. She's done it plenty of times before. She knew better than to talk to strangers and wouldn't let herself get kidnapped by some creep!_

_Plop!_

_Elaine cringed as she felt the first drop hit her bare arms. She was still a little way from reaching home, but Elaine wasn't too sure she would make it on time. She contemplated hiding under a tree until the rain stopped. But that thought was scrapped once she recalled Philippe saying that standing under a tree would attract lightning or something like that. Was that correct? Elaine wasn't sure. But she didn't want to waste time thinking when she started to feel more drops. She glanced around for a shelter of some kind. Why did she have to live in such a rural area?_

_Soon, Elaine's eyes landed on the remains of a house. According to her parents, it had burned down some years ago. They specifically said to never go inside. Being a good little girl, she had listened to that warning up to now. But it was raining. She would be careful and not go upstairs. She was sure her parents would understand._

_Taking a brief look around to make sure no one was around to be a withness, Elaine quickly ran up the driveway which, until it started raining, had been dusty. Thankfully it wasn't muddy, otherwise she might have lost a shoe or both!_

_Elaine's parents never told her what had started the fire. They probably didn't know either. But the roof was still up so while Elaine may not have been the warmest in the house, she was dry just as long as she kept away from the broken windows._

_There was little to no furniture and the 'furniture' was really just broken, charred remains and a few bricks lying about if they counted. If stacked they probably could have been sat on. Couldn't they?_

_Elaine wondered if she should get a start on her homework now. Better now since she might be here a while. But she doubted she could really focus on books in this place. Elaine tapped her foot very gently as she looked all over her current room. Possibly what had been the living room since there was a damaged fireplace in it._

_The floors creaked, and one or two boards actually seemed loose. Could it be possible to lift them up? Elaine doubted she could risk using the stairs making going upstairs out of the question. As such, while she would go under them, she could still look under the floorboards. Elaine twirled one of her low, loose ponytails as she thought it over before she got down on her knees, being careful where she knelt exactly. She put her hands on one loose floorboard and pressed her fingers against the sides of it before lifting it up with some difficulty due to its weight._

_There wasn't much to spot underneath. It was just dark. _

_But she spotted something. It stood out in the darkness underneath the floorboards. It didn't really shine, but it stood out enough for the young French girl to notice. Her curiosity rising, she reached down and grabbed the edge of it before pulling it up._

_It was a broach. A bit dull in colour. Elaine wasn't even too sure about what the colour would be called. The design was definitely not like anything she had seen before. Definitely different compared to what her mother had. There were some spirals on it, and didn't feel smooth. If there was a fire here, this broach must have fallen in through the cracks. It was the only explanation._

_Elaine looked outside and saw it was still raining. She had time to come up with an excuse as to how she found the broach without mentioning the house. Then she would try and find out what she could about this broach._

Elaine was brought out of her memories. She only realised now that she had no idea what she had been looking for. She sighed at the frustration felt. It felt like she wasted time. Standing up, she put the box back on her desk before checking the window in the room was closed before checking the rest and her front door.

Her new nightly routine.


	35. Brother Dearest

The last week or two had been quiet. The closest thing to even a sound heard by Descole were the times when she visited Professor Layton, Emmy and Luke every now and then or vice versa. That still didn't mean she was willing to let her guard down. Descole was capable of finding her. He knew where she worked, where her parents lived. The only safe place she had was her home and even then there was some stress, from checking all windows and doors were locked.

Outside her home, she wasn't sure where else Descole would want her to know where he was. This was clearly a form of torment. Making her feel vulnerable, and possibly feel her friends and family could be at risk. She had again briefly considered calling Scotland Yard. Maybe even tell that Bloom guy. He seemed pretty interested in regards to Descole.

Elaine still carried her hatchet around her house when no one was around. You could never be too careful, could you? Elaine didn't think so at the moment. Of course, she was careful not to show it around to anyone when someone was present. She didn't want to look crazy, or sociopathic.

When Elaine heard her doorbell ring one night, Elaine had took said hatchet in one hand as she walked up to the door and looked through the peephole. She was surprised when she saw it was her brother, and without second thought unlocked the door and opened it up.

"Philippe, what are you doing 'ere?" Elaine asked as she gave her grinning brother a one armed hug.

"I thought it couldn't 'urt to give my petit soeur a surprise visit." Philippe explained before he noticed the hatchet in Elaine's hand and frowned.

"Why do you 'ave…?"

"Oh, this?" Elaine gave a sheepish chuckle. "I was cutting up some turf for the fire."

"Oh. Alright then. So, can I come in?"

"Sure, sure." Elaine stepped aside and let Phillipe step inside. "So, 'ow's the secretary work at that law firm going?" Elaine asked as she locked the door behind them.

"It's going alright. Nothing too exciting 'appening." Philippe shrugged, brushing a loose piece of dark hair behind his ear.

"Do you want something to drink? Tea? Wine? Water?"

"Just some water, thanks."

"So, not that I'm not thankful, but why are you 'ere exactly?" Elaine questioned after getting him the glass of water and sat in the armchair while Philippe plopped himself on the couch.

"Well… Mum and dad mentioned you were a little off the last week or two so I thought I'd see 'ow you were." Elaine nodded. "And Elaine?"

"Oui?"

"You're still 'olding the 'atchet. Mind if I put it back in the turf basket for you?" Philippe asked as he jerked his head towards said basket near Elaine.

"Oh, right. Desole. I'll put it down." Elaine apologised awkwardly before dropping it into the basket. "Just sort of… Forgot, I guess."

"It's no problem." Philippe brushed it off. "So, 'ow 'ave you been coping?"

"I've 'ad good days, bad days. Just like everyone does." Elaine shrugged. "It feels easier to eat these days I suppose though."

What about sleep?"

"Meh. I suppose I don't 'ave nightmares like I did when I first came back."

"Nightmares? Like what?" Philippe appeared like his curiosity was peaked.

"You wouldn't be too interested." Philippe put the glass on the coffee table and leaned forward.

"I think I would. Now tell." Elaine thought it over briefly. It couldn't hurt to tell her older brother, could it? He wouldn't tell anyone.

"Well…" Elaine began, a little tentative at first. "One nightmare I recall had Descole first as a wolf who was possibly going to eat me, and then as a woodcutter with a bloody axe to use on me." Philippe didn't say anything at first. He seemed to be thinking something over in his head.

"… Interesting." He mused. "I wouldn't 'ave thought you would dream of something like that."

"What can you do?"

"Not much I suppose." Philippe agreed after taking a sip of his water. "But you don't 'ave them now, right? So it's all okay?"

"I guess." The phone then began to ring. "I should get that."

"Go ahead." Elaine stood up and went to the kitchen to answer her phone.

"Bonjour?"

"_Hey, sis. How's it going?_"

… No.

"_Sis?_"

"_I-I'm fine. Really._" Elaine responded quietly, glancing to the archway leading to the livingroom really quickly.

"_You sure? You sound a little off._"

"_Just… A bit tired from work is all._" Elaine mumbled as her eyes wandered towards the nearby drawers were the knives were.

"_That's good. Anyway, I wanted to call because I was wondering if maybe it'd be okay for me to come down and visit you next week._"

"_Erm… I'm not sure if next week would be okay. I'd have to make another call to check some stuff._" Elaine's and began to inch towards the drawer handle.

"_Oh. That's okay. So have you been sleeping alright?_"

"_Sleep's been alright._" Elaine answered back simply as she slowly opened the drawer and reached in.

"_Maybe you should lie down after we're done. You sound like you could use it._"

"_Indeed I do._" Elaine muttered as she pulled out a short bread knife, only for her hand to be gently grabbed. She shut her eyes and took a deep breath. "_Sorry, but I have to go now._"

"_That's okay. Call you later?_"

"_Yeah. One more thing._"

"_Hm?_"

"_… I love you big brother._"

Elaine hung up the phone as the knife was slowly taken out of her hand and thrown back into the drawer which was then shut. Elaine gritted her teeth as she heard that familiar chuckle of Descole.

"I did say we'd meet again."


	36. A Sort of Appology

Elaine mulled over how she could have been tricked by Descole's disguises twice now. It made a damning blow to her pride, that was for certain, but she wanted to reason with herself that there were some good causes.

Joseph was easy enough. While him and Elaine got on well and could be considered work friends that was about it. Elaine wouldn't know every ounce of detail about him and even with talking, there would have been work keeping them too busy for Elaine to notice Descole having taken Joseph's place. As for her brother, Descole only needed Elaine to open her door fully at least. While their family did usually speak French amongst themselves, it wouldn't be too unheard of for them to speak English even in private. It also wouldn't have been too surprising if Descole had actually done some research before coming here as her brother. Maybe found out some things when he was at her parents' house. Then again, he probably was going to reveal himself sooner or later.

Thinking it all out, it all seemed like lame excuses. But they were the most logical Elaine could think of. Besides, she never considered that Descole would impersonate a family member. Only hurt one. She had been too worried about that possibility to consider that Descole would use her trust in her family against herself.

She had yet to face said man. She hadn't turned around since she hung up the phone and he put the knife back in the drawer. It was a pregnant silence until Descole broke it.

"No calling for help? No attempt at screaming for assistance?"

"Chances are you will 'ave done what you've done and already taken me away by the time the police get 'ere." Elaine responded dryly. "And you would probably knock me out the moment I opened my mouth."

"I can't help but feel flattered by how well you know me." Elaine couldn't tell if he was being serious by the hint of humour in his tone, or if that humour was false to hide what his real emotion was. Probably anger. Something vindictive.

"I figured you would trust you would have blind faith in your family," Descole continued. "But I didn't think you would actually let your guard down so much for an elder brother, and willing let go of a potential weapon." He paused. "… Your mother did mention that he had always had a protective nature when it came to you. I suppose seeing someone normally associated with safety does tend to have someone let their guard down. So if anything, posing as your brother was a brilliant choice on my part." Now there was a smug tone in his voice. Elaine turned her head to look over her shoulder to see he had a small, victorious smirk.

"My brother's a better man then you ever will be." Elaine said in a voice that to her was surprisingly calm, though tainted by a little spat. "At least 'e wouldn't 'ide behind a mask when playing mind games."

"And I'm certainly not your brother."

There was another silence. Funny. Elaine had not imagined any reunion between the two of them would be like this. Then again, she hadn't exactly planned on any reunion. Or even thought of how they would even meet up again, if ever. Well, those thoughts were invalid and pointless now. A waste of space within a mind.

"So 'ow did you survive the fall?" Elaine broke the silence this time. She briefly thought over if it would be worth it to maybe make another attempt to get a knife in her hand, as well as considered the odds of her running back into the living room to get the hatchet. But with Descole standing not too far from her, she would have to refrain herself from actually committing the actions. At least for now.

"I fell into the water." Descole responded curtly. "Even if that didn't work, I probably could have grabbed onto the tree branches."

"'Ow did you find my 'ouse?"

"I asked your mother about your therapist, and from there I tracked down the office and broke in and looked through the file cabinet for your's. It was really quite easy."

What more could Elaine ask? There were plenty of questions to ask, but if she asked the wrong one or asked at the wrong time the current peace (Uneasy as it may be) might end. Anything relating to Lucy was probably not a good thing to ask right now.

"Why did you feel the need to be in my office for a week?" Elaine then asked.

"I felt like playing with you." Descole drawled. "I was originally going to only be there the first day, leave the scarf and carry on my way. But certain things came up which meant I had to stay longer."

It was clear that finding out about Lucy was not something Descole planned for Elaine to do. Elaine was not meant to know anything. A safety precaution perhaps? Could knowing Lucy lead to his real identity? With her surname perhaps (Maiden or not depending on the relationship between them both), but other than that it seemed a bit too cautious. But this was the actions of a man who constantly wore a mask. If anything, 'too cautious' may be putting it in a light way.

"So are you finished your questioning? It's getting quite boring now." Descole interrupted Elaine's thoughts.

"That depends. What 'appens now?" Elaine already had an idea, but the slight scowl of annoyance on Descole's face was nice to see.

"What do you think? Obviously I'm taking you back!" Elaine scoffed as she looked away again.

"Really now, monsieur? Well, I apologise then. Because that isn't 'appening!" Elaine turned around sharply, swinging one leg towards his head. But the masked man just sucked and as soon as it passed over his head, he grabbed her ankle.

"I would apologise as well. But quite frankly when there's something I want, I don't like it being flaunted in front of me." After that, Elaine soon found herself on the floor. She gave a small groan before the front of her shirt was grabbed and she was pulled up to meet Descole eye to eye.

"So, are you going to be a good puppy and behave yourself?"

"Are you going to stop being an arrogant secousse?" Elaine countered back spitefully.

"Shame. Here I thought the civility we built between us could still be scalvaged." Elaine scowled as she tried to push away from Descole, and even kicked at his legs. "But I do have some questions of my own, Hawthorne."

"Why should I answer them?"

"First, why did you try to save me?" Descole asked, ignoring the woman's question. Elaine briefly stopped her struggling. Descole give any sign of how he was feeling exactly, though Elaine suspected he was looking at her thoroughly.

"Pardon?"

"Back at Ambrosia when I fell off the Detra-gigant. You tried to grab me and I want to know why." Elaine frowned as she thought back. Why did she do it exactly? Was it from a sense of duty? A sense of right and wrong? To ease her conscience or make sure Descole received justice for what he had done?

"… I'm not entirely sure." Elaine admitted, a little sheepishly. "I… I know you make me angry. But I don't think I could ever 'ave it in me to kill you or let you just die." Descole seemed to consider her answer, though didn't look entirely satisfied.

"… I… am glad you're alive though." Elaine awkwardly admitted, avoiding eye contact with the man in front of her. "Maybe not in my 'ouse but still. I know the whole, 'you-'aving-a-'issy-fit' on Ambrosia was somewhat my fault, so it does ease my conscience knowing you're alright." Elaine didn't really want to say the words, 'I'm sorry' to Descole. Not when he was clearly going to kidnap her again. What she did say would be about as close as she could do for now at least.

"I'm guessing that is as close as I'll get to an apology." Descole mused. "But I suppose I can accept it. For the moment." Descole's free hand reached up and Elaine instantly tried to push and slap it away from that one spot in her shoulder that would knock her out. But he was quicker and his hand was on said spot.

"You really should learn to stop struggling." Descole muttered before Elaine felt a pinch and drifted off to a dreamless sleep. Mentally cursing herself for putting herself in this position.

* * *

**OMAKE THEATRE: Where Layton Characters are chibi-fied!**

* * *

**Chapter 4 of Elliella**

Prince Descole grumbled as he went through the flocks of fangirls, occasionally kicking one or two away as they clung to his cloak. Two hours into the ball and his bastard brothers had already found girls. Randall had spotted some blonde girl named Ang-something and Hershel was currently dancing with a girl named Claire.

"Oh, Dessy~." Descole cringed. The sound of the crazy man who's been stalking him heard loud and clear. He turned around to see what's-his-name (Anton, maybe?) run up to him.

"I'm so happy I found you. I guess my daughters really like your brothers, huh?"

"I suppose." Descole grumbled. So many questions were flooding his mind. How did this creepy have children? Did mpreg actually exist? If so, he shuddered in horror.

"So, that just leaves you and me then, huh~?" Descole instantly backed away.

"Wh-what?"

"You heard me, and since you're not with anyone-."

"You're wrong!" Descole said a little too quickly, backing away a little more. "Sh-she's just gone to the bathroom! Should be back any minute now!" Anton scowled.

"Fine. I'll look for you again in a few minutes. And when she isn't here, we're dancing for all to see, future husband!" Descole felt ill as Anton walked away. Either from the idea of dancing with Anton in front of everyone, being married to him, or the fact that the hole on the back of his dress showed off his perfectly white butt.

Descole looked around frantically for a girl to spend the rest of the night with. Preferably not one that was only going to attempt humping his leg. That's when he spotted her.

A brunette girl in green helping herself to some champagne from one of the waiters. She was gorgeous, had a nice body and when she noticed him, didn't try to hump him.

She was perfect!

"Excuse me!" Descole was quickly at the mystery woman's side. "I know this is a bit sudden, but would you mind accompanying me into the back garden where no one will see us?"

"… What sort of girl do you take me for? A whore?" she questioned. Looking a bit insulted.

"Wha-what? No! I just want to dance with you and I don't want to be bothered by this creepy pervert in a dress!" She frowned and looked thoughtful.

"… Did 'e 'appen to be wearing a dress that showed off 'is rear?"

"Unfortunately, yes."

"Let's go."

The pair quickly made their way through the crowd unnoticed. Had they stayed just outside the door, they would have heard Anton wailing about his, 'Dessy-boy-toy'.

"It looks beautiful out 'ere." Elliella commented as they went out into the gardens.

"Indeed it is." Descole agreed with a nod. "I remember mother used to bring me and my brothers out here before she died. Now we're stuck with a grandchild obsessed father."

"Is it really that bad?" Descole frowned as he recalled a few incidents. Such as the one last week…

_"Okay, who did it?!" Randall yelled as he stormed into the Royal Library where Hershel and Descole were. Randall through several packs of condoms onto the table. Descole looked up at Randall with a, 'what the hell?' sort of look while Hershel went beet red._

_"… Why did you just throw condoms on the table?"_

_"Someone punctured holes in all of mine!" Randall yelled. "And it had to have been one of you!"_

_"Actually, it was me. If it comes to it, I'm willing to accept a bastard grandchild." Bronev said casually as he walked by with a book called, 'How to be a Dick: For Dummies!'_

Then the week after that…

_Randall and Hershel were in the Royal Livingroom playing on the Royal Playstation Four._

_"Hi kids, what are you doing?" Bronev asked as he walked inside._

_"We're playing Grand Theft Auto Twelve." Randall explained, no looking away from the screen._

_"Really? So tell me, does your character finally get women preggers?"_

_"Er…"_

_"You know what game I like?" Bronev asked._

_"I don't really ca-."_

_"The Sims." Bronev interrupted Randall. Hershel was looking a bit uncomfortable and he looked out for any potential exit. "Because I can use it to create Sim versions of you two and Descole, and have you get married, watch you have sex and give me grandchildren." Randall and Hershel now stared up at their father._

_"Y… You don't… Really want to watch us do it, do you?" Randall gagged as Hershel put his red face in his hands._

_"Nope. Not unless I really have to."_

Then the week after that…

_Bronev, Randall, Hershel and Descole were eating their Royal Dinner when suddenly Descole started to choke on his food. Hershel was the first to react and gave Descole the Heimlich Maneuvere. Descole coughed up an actually bottle of fertility pills._

_"What the hell!" Descole jumped up and backed away, Randall and Hershel doing so as well._

_"Just giving you a little help." Bronev told them._

"… I feel sorry for you." Elliella told Descole in a genuine tone.

"Thank you." Descole nodded. "So, shall we dance m'lady?" Descole took Elliella's hands and gave it a kiss. Elliella smiled and nodded.

They waltzed throughout the garden for the rest of the night. The song, 'Why do Birds Suddenly Appear' playing in the background as the two began falling in love.

Because that sort of stuff happens in fairytales. If it makes you feel any better, older versions of fairytales are dark. In Sleeping Beauty for instance, the prince rapes the princess in her sleep and gets her pregnant and she give birth to the babies (Still asleep mind you), and wakes up after one of the babies bites her finger I think. Then, the princess marries her rapist.

… Isn't it great to ruin your childhood? I know I'm loving it!

"I know we haven't known each other too long, but I think I love you." Descole said in a daze. "Please marry me. I don't want to marry a Sue."

"Oh, God y- wait, what time is it?" Ellliella asked suddenly. Descole checked his watch.

"Er, nearly five to midnight."

"Merde! I got to go! Seeya!" Elliella picked up her skirts and began to run.

"HEY! You can't just halfway say yes and run! Get back here!" Descole began running after Elliella. In her panic, Elliella stopped to take off her shoe and threw it at the prince's head, knocking him out before she ran much farther ahead to the fountain where Growsky was drinking out of. Elliella jumped on his back making him yelp in pain as he was pushed sharply against the stone of the fountain, possibly bruising and/or breaking some ribs.

"Andele, Growsky! Andele!"

"Uh, nei-neigh!"

Growsky then ran like hell. The ground burning beneath where his feet touched, a bit like the DeLorean in 'Back to the Future'.


	37. Same Room Again

Elaine was surprised to find where she was when she woke up on a reasonably bright morning. Not so much being in the room she was given in Descole's home, but more the fact that it was still her room. She would have expected Descole to maybe put her in the basement or maybe put her in some room closer to his or Raymond's.

Looking around as she sat up, she knew it was the same room. Everything was where she remembered it to be positioned. The sheets of the four poster bed were still emerald green. The door to the en suite was open. It was the same room.

Elaine lightly drummed her fingers on the bed as she contemplated what to do next. Could this be like the first time she woke up here? Maybe. Elaine had already guessed that the window to the small balcony would likely be locked. It'd be shocking if it wasn't. But should she even bother checking if the window and door to the hallway were locked? She was a prisoner here again, and her previous escape was mostly luck considering the circumstances.

A moment or two later, Elaine got out of her bed. She might as well check at least. That way, no one can dare say she didn't even check. No surprise the window was locked. Mildly surprisingly the door was though, but was probably done to keep her from wandering around the house or something like that. She folded her arms and tapped her foot. No clock in the room. No way to tell the definite time except to make as educated of a guess as possible judging from the outside. It was definitely in the morning at least. Maybe around nine or a little after?

But what was going to happen as soon as Descole showed up? No doubt translating Azran glyphs would be involved, or some other scheme similar to that of Misthallery and Ambrosia. Complicated, over the top, unethical and extreme. That seemed to be how Descole's plans worked from what she had seen so far.

With nothing else she could do and not in the mood to read any of the books on the desk, Elaine went back to the bed to cocoon herself in the bed sheets. May as well be asleep when someone came in.

She was too long there when she did hear her door unlock. Elaine kept still and had her eyes shut tight, though not too much to draw attention. She heard footsteps approaching her bed. Descole's footsteps. Elaine tried to keep her breathing even, and it was actually easier then she had first thought it would. She was so sure Descole approaching would have caused her a heart attack by now!

"Please don't tell me we're playing this childish game again." Elaine inwardly sighed and turned over on her back to look up at Descole. While his mouth didn't show what he was feeling, Elaine suspected that he might have been glaring down at her.

"What childish game? I'm just sleeping." Elaine said with a mocking, child-like tone.

"I don't want a repeat of last time you did this."

"But I was sleeping not too long ago."

"I wasn't talking about that itself. I meant that last time you did this, you starved yourself for a week nearly!"

"You were the one starving me!" Elaine spat. "I just refused to do your work."

"And if you had done it, you wouldn't have starved." Descole scoffed.

"And I'm 'ardly the only person in the whole damn world who can do your translations, am I? So you could 'ave just let me die and find someone else!"

"I don't want anyone else!" Descole snapped.

"… What do you mean you don't want anyone else?" Elaine felt a bit thrown off by Descole's words. He just huffed and looked away.

"I mean… I already have you here. Why should I go through the trouble of having to try and translate myself when you're here?" Elaine didn't answer straightaway to that. It just felt a bit… Awkward, somehow. Elaine cleared her throat.

"I didn't realise that the 'great' Descole could be so lazy."

"I'm hardly lazy." Descole scoffed. "I just don't want to go through the trouble of having to find another translator. Then there's the case of your dead body to consider."

"Glad to know I'd be so missed by you." Elaine's sarcasm was heavy as she brought her knees up to rest her chin on as she hugged herself.

"… I… Wouldn't want you to die." Elaine looked sharply up at Descole who seemed to avoid her look.

"Pardon?"

"I said I wouldn't want you to die." Descole repeated, sounding reluctant as he did so. There was a bit of an awkward silence before Descole spoke again. "I'll leave you to get reacquainted with your room." Descole turned to leave. "I'll send Raymond up with breakfast." Elaine looked at Descole as he reached the door and suddenly said,

"Merci." Descole stopped as he grabbed the doorknob but didn't speak as he opened it and stepped outside. Elaine closed her eyes and leaned back on the bed.

"You're welcome." Elaine shot up just in time to see the door shut. She stared at it for another moment or two before lying back down again.

She couldn't deny, she had missed Raymond's cooking.


	38. Avoiding Work

Elaine just simply stared down at the sheets in front of her on her desk. She could understand the glyphs alright. No problem there. Nothing stood out to her spectacularly about them if she had to be honest. It just seemed like fables or stories of some kind. Honestly, some of them (Though not all) were surprisingly… morbid in a sense.

She had seriously considered just translating them and getting it over with. She really had. But decided to put it off. How long exactly she wasn't sure. It would depend really on what Descole would threaten to do if she didn't translate. Starve her again? Elaine had already proven she would risk it, even if the first time round she had given in after a week. The only thing Elaine could think of that she couldn't say no too was her family.

That possibility was a frightening one. There had yet to be an intentional death caused by Descole's actions (That Elaine knew of), but that didn't mean he wasn't capable. She could only hope that Descole wouldn't actually think of it himself. If so? Well, Elaine actually feared of what he could ask then.

The door creaked opened and Elaine shut her eyes as she folded her arms after taking a small sip from the teacup Raymond had given her earlier along with her breakfeast. She knew Descole would be annoyed, to put it on a very child friendly term. But she wanted to keep as much of her defiant nature up as possible. It just seemed to have… Waned a bit lately. She didn't understand why exactly. Maybe being held prisoner a year and only escaping on luck may have damaged it. It made some degree of sense.

"Tut, tut, Hawthorne. Three hours and you've nothing down yet." Descole tutted. "Don't tell me you have forgotten your job and what the glyphs mean?"

"I know what they say." Elaine mumbled. "I'm just taking my time. Not sure what you would want with fables anyway. Where do you even get these things from?"

"I acquire them through my own means." Descole answered. "Not that it really matters to you."

"You don't plan to show off 'ow you got them? I'm actually shocked." Elaine mused. "Doesn't really matter though I suppose. It was likely illegal anyway."

"It depends really on who you steal them from." Descole remarked, sounding slightly bitter. "In this case, it was taking knowledge from people who do not even deserve to exist."

"A… bit of an extreme statement to make. Even from you." Elaine noted. She didn't think Descole would be the type of person to wish for someone or something to not exist. How this was supposed to make those on the receiving end look was an uncertain to the Frenchwoman given what she has been through already by Descole.

"You'd be mistaken if you believe me to be the worst being alive, Hawthorne, you are dreadfully wrong." Elaine turned her head sharply up towards him.

"Like who?"

"None of your business, Hawthorne."

"I think it is my business."

"And what would make you think that?" Elaine didn't answer right away but with thoughts in order she did.

"If I'm translating stuff you stole, I think I 'ave a right to know who it was stolen from. If they get to you, they'll probably take me down too."

"Well that isn't going to happen because they won't find us." Descole hissed. "And I strongly suggest you translate, now!"

"Make me!" Elaine spat, starting a glaring match with Descole. If she could have seen his eyes, then Elaine would have had more confidence that she wouldn't be the first to blink or look away. Instead, she just felt some dry stinging in her eyes as she fought the urge to blink. It wasn't until the tiny bit of water building up began to leak that Elaine gave in to blinking. She scowled as she looked away and rubbed her eyes.

"Has anyone ever told you that you can be very childish?" Descole asked, a tiny smirk on his lips.

"I am not childish!" Elaine muttered. "You're the childish garçon!"

"I'm hardly childish. Unlike you, I do my work."

"When you're not manipulating people."

"I hardly manipulate. I just set the tools for them." Descole spoke passively.

"Still the same thing."

Elaine winced as Descole grabbed her hair, albeit not as roughly as the other few times he had done so.

"As much as I admitably enjoy this banter, I still expect work to be done."

"Well, I definitely don't like you grabbing my 'air!" Elaine grabbed her brown locks and tried to push Descole's hand off. After a few moments of failing that, he let go and Elaine's hand ended up swinging and hitting against the wall above her desk. She winced and instinctively held it close to her chest as her thumb brushed over the more sore areas.

"I think it's suffice to say that the puppy got her just reward." Descole was barely keeping the humour from his tone. He clearly found the incident somewhat funny in a way as Elaine growled. "That's what you get, I suppose. For having such a low guard."

"Stop, calling me puppy." Elaine's eyes narrowed. "And secondly, I do not 'ave a low guard! You… You just caught me off guard! It could 'appen to anyone!"

"Perhaps. Just, not to certain people such as myself."

"I doubt that."

"I think you'll find it's true." Before Elaine could say another word, Descole's hand slapped down on the papers on the desk.

"Again. Continue your work. I don't care if it's fables. They sometimes have something useful in them." Descole turned to leave as Elaine scowled. She looked down at the papers and grabbed a pen. She may as well go along with this. Whatever would happen, she would just have to try and get through this with as little difficulty as possible.

"And if you're a good puppy, I might give you an award."

Elaine put a hand to her face.

Why was she blushing so hard?

* * *

**First of all, thank you all so much for the reviews. They mean a lot to me and I love to hear your thoughts :)**

**Secondly, I've had an idea.**

**The first is a one shot of a Teacher!Elaine/Student!Descole. I don't have much thought for it yet, but it wandered into my mind and I thought it would be pretty interesting. It'd be an AU obviously, but I'd like to hear what you guys would think of it.**


	39. A Scar

It was about a week give or take before Elaine was able to go about the house on her own again. Not too much had changed from what Elaine could tell. Except for maybe a new painting near the library and an artefact or two that Elaine could faintly recall being on display at the Crown Petone. Things Descole seemed proud to display, and really showed his confidence that police forces would never find him or his home.

It was on one night she felt particularly glad to be allowed to walk again. She had just woken up in the middle of the night. It felt sometime after midnight at least. And she was hungry. She doubted she could get into trouble for getting a late night snack, so after blinking away some of the sleep from her eyes, Elaine got out of the bed. She grabbed a dressing gown and once it was on she stepped outside her room.

She never realised how creepy the house looked at night. Then again she was never about at night without there being much light. It must have been much later then Elaine initially suspected when she first woke up. A little while before dawn perhaps?

Elaine had passed a door by a few feet when she faintly heard a loud gasp. The kind you give when woken from a nightmare. She looked to the door she had just passed. That was Descole's room, wasn't it? Had Descole woken from a nightmare? Was something wrong? Elaine thought over possible actions and their consequences. Elaine couldn't just barge in. If it turned out she had been over reacting and stormed in without reason, Descole would be far from pleased.

Too caught up in her thoughts, Elaine hadn't notice the door open until she noticed Descole step out. Holding onto the frame of the door as he held a hand over mask covered face. With his hat looking a bit hastily put on, it was clear he probably only put his mask and hat on before stepping out of his room. Probably only because Elaine was in the house. If it was just him and Raymond, Elaine had little doubt that his face would have been fully viewable.

He was grumbling incoherent things to himself. Elaine snapped herself back to reality and turned to continue walking to the kitchen. Maybe Descole wouldn't notice her if she kept moving now and-

"Hawthorne!" Elaine winched just a tad and turned back to look at Descole. His grip on the doorframe seemed to tighten as he stared at her. "What were you doing outside my room?" Elaine was a bit surprised by how calmly he said this. Even if there was a bit of edge on his tone. "Well?"

"I woke up and I was 'ungry," Elaine answered. "So, I went to go get something to eat." Elaine then noticed something else. Descole's shirt was open (that alone wasn't the reason of course) and Elaine managed to spot what looked like some sort of scar on his waist. Possibly caused by a gun.

"What 'appened to you?" Elaine asked before she could stop herself. Descole quickly pulled his shirt closed before Elaine could get a further look.

"Nothing that concerns you." There was a slight snarl like tone in his voice and Elaine bit her tongue lightly. She couldn't deny the concern she was feeling but decided to let it go. She might not have been a medical expert, but the wound seemed maybe… Two or three years old, maybe? He probably had it before they first met anyway if Elaine was correct in her guess. So it probably wasn't much to worry about.

"You said you were going to the kitchen, yes?" Descole quickly buttoned his shirt. "I may as well come with you. Get something to drink."

"R-right." Elaine already started walking ahead of Descole, and he didn't seem to be in too much of a hurry to follow. Arriving in the kitchen first, Elaine began to help herself to some bread rolls. When Descole did enter, he appeared to look at Elaine questioningly.

"No tea?"

"It's a bit early for tea, non?"

"I'm probably not going to get back to sleep anyway." Descole muttered. He sounded a bit tired and sat down at the table. Elaine looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

"You're not going to make the tea?"

"You're already standing." Descole was lightly smirked as Elaine scowled.

"I swear, you are just plain lazy at times." Elaine muttered as she went to put water in the kettle and heat it up.

"I'm not lazy, just tired."

"I bet you would 'ave starved if you didn't 'ave Raymond."

"Now that isn't true."

"Maybe," Elaine briefly agreed. "It would just taste terrible." Descole grunted and Elaine gave a tiny smirk as she waited for the kettle to finish boiling. It wasn't too long until the kettle gave a final sharp whistle, and Elaine moved to get the tea cups.

"Good to see you're being a good puppy." Elaine huffed at what sounded like a teasing remark from Descole.

"I'm only making tea because I changed my mind about 'aving any myself." A short moment later, Elaine had thrown used teabags into the bin and placed one in front of Descole before she went to add sugar to her own cup.

"Aren't you forgetting something?"

"If you want milk added, get it yourself." Elaine told him bluntly, not bothering to look up from her cup as she stirred her drink before dropping the spoon in the sink. After sitting down at the table, she saw Descole give a small scowl before he stood up and walked to the fridge. "See? Was that so 'ard?" Elaine mocked after Descole added his milk. She was sure he was glaring at her, but Elaine didn't care.

"Of course not. So I don't see why you couldn't do it?"

"Because I'm not your maid."

"True, but the uniform would look fine on you." Elaine stared at Descole for a moment before shaking her head and returned her focus to her current bread roll and tea. There was a silence between the two for a while. Elaine was already regretting coming out for a snack.

"… So, any current schemes I should be aware of?" Elaine wanted to break the silence. If she was going to be stuck with this madman, she may as well make small talk.

"I have a 'scheme', as you so colourfully call it. It involves travelling to a small town called Stansbury first."

"Stransbury?" Elaine frowned. The name seemed familiar until it clicked. "Isn't that where the Wall of Norwell is?"

"Indeed. Have you seen it before?" Descole asked.

"Oui. When I was in college, my class went to see it. We didn't stay long enough though. I would 'ave liked a chance to try and decipher it myself." Elaine admitted, before taking a long sip of her tea. Finished, she noticed Descole's smirk and frowned.

"… And I'm possibly going to, aren't I?"

"Indeed, Hawthorne." Elaine looked down at her cup and swirled its contents around a little as another silence took place. A few minutes later, Elaine asked,

"What was your nightmare about?"

"…" Elaine frowned when Descole tensed. Maybe she shouldn't have asked. "What makes you so sure it was a nightmare?" There was no answer at first, but Elaine soon replied,

"I… 'eard a noise from your room. Like when you wake up from a nightmare." Descole didn't say anything at first. Elaine took that for, 'none of your business.' She would have decided to forget about it had Descole not stood up and pulled his shirt up enough for the scar to show and point to it.

"The day I got this."

That was all he said. After that, he sat that and continued with his tea.

No more words were said that night.

* * *

**OMAKE THEATRE: Where Layton characters are chibi-fied!**

* * *

**Chapter 5 of Elliella**

"So, how did it go?" Bronev asked casually as he slumped in his throne lazily. Randomly holding a kingly sceptre just because he could.

"W-well, I met this really pretty girl called, Claire…" Hershel began bashfully before Bronev cut across.

"Perfect, that's your bride."

"But I didn't even ask her-."

"Randall, what about you?"

Randall had a dazed look mixed with sparkles in his eyes since the ball ended. No one was certain whether to react to this in fear or awe.

"I met an angel named Angela. The most splendid girl alive. I want to dance, eat, sing, frolic in a field of flowers, shower and have sex with her and her alone."

"That's… great?" Even Bronev was unsure how to react either before he cleared his throat and looked at Descole. "What about you? Need I remind you that as next in line there is no question that you must marry?" Descole cringed a bit and shuffled his feet.

"I, uh… Did meet a girl. I did ask, and she was going to say yes. But then she asked the time and when I told her she ran off and threw her shoe at me."

"Maybe it was her period?"

"RANDALL! GROSS!"

"So… you're not, technically engaged?" Descole winced a bit as his father's condescending tone. Oh, he could already taste the blood from when his new robot killed him.

"I… Sort of am-, I just-."

"I guess we'll have to prepare a wedding with one of the Sue's then." Bronev sighed and clicked his fingers. The tank containing the Mary Sues appeared from behind a curtain again, a huge plaster covering the hold one of them made when they grabbed Bronev from the first chapter of this fairytale. Descole panicked and began backing away as his brothers looked at him in sympathy and to the Sues in horror.

"No, no, no!"

"If it makes you feel any better, you get to pick which one." Bronev offered, wincing as one of the horrid creatures gave a loud shriek of pleasure. God only knows what kind of pleasure. And no doubt your mind is already in the gutter, dear reader.

Descole was pale, and looked ready to throw up.

"Th-there has to be another way out of this!" Bronev looked thoughtful.

"There was this lovely lady I saw on the dance floor who looked interested in you. Said her name was Anton, but I think it's short for Antonia."

Descole could already feel bile tickling the back of his throat.

"Wait! Descole, do you still have the shoe your mystery girl threw at you?" Hershel had a plan in mind, but it would require that shoe!

"Yeah, it's right here." Descole took the shoe out from under his cloak.

"… Why did you even… Never mind that. We can use that shoe to find your girl, by have every single one in the kingdom try it on!" Hershel looked very proud of himself while Randall nodded enthusiastically.

"… What if someone has the same shoe size? And couldn't I just looked at every girl's face until I find her, it's not like I'm bli-."

"Sues! Anton!" Randall and Hershel both coughed to remind Descole of his alternatives.

"Er, yeah! That plan also works!"

"Fine, fine." Bronev waved them off. Go ahead. Just be ready to get married by the time I get back, and everything is cool."

"So, where to first?" Descole asked Hershel and Randall as they rode away from their bitchin' castle.

"Can we pick up our girlfriends first?"

"Randall, why do we even need to-?"

"To move this story along! It's not funny anymore and just getting boring!"

Back at Elliella's home…

"He could have been mine!" Anton wailed on the couch as he forced Elliella to wave a fan in front of his face. "My Dessy-boy-toy. Being married to someone worthwhile. Money. Chocolate. All of it gone because of some trollop!"

"Gee, I wonder who the trollop is?" Elliella muttered sarcastically.

"And it's bad enough Angela and Claire got someone." Anton muttered as her folded his arms and gave a childish pout. "If those two end up marrying those princes, I guess I can cash in on benefits." He then glared up at Elliella. "But I'll still be stuck with you!"

"The feeling's mutual."

A knock came to the door and Anton groaned before yelling loudly,

"Angela, go get the door! The servant's fanning me!"

Angela rolled her eyes and went to answer the door. The moment she did, she felt something grab onto her legs and looking down, she saw Randall hugging onto her legs.

"Sweet, sweet Angela! Please come with me to the castle! It'll be the best time of your life, I swear!" Angela looked rather started that the young prince was hugging her legs, though as surprised as Descole and Hershel were.

"Sorry about him. The Royal Burse dropped him on his head before father had her guillotined for adding too many sprinkles to his cake."

"… What?"

"Don't ask." Hershel sighed. But the moment he saw Claire he went cherry red and tried to speak, though said ability seemed to have abandoned him.

"Oh, hello Hershel." Claire chirped. "I wasn't expecting you. Is there anything I can help you with?"

Hershel still couldn't speak.

"He wants to ask you to move to the castle with him." Randall said before he began nuzzling Angela's legs, and purring like a cat.

Meanwhile, Anton had looked around the archway and saw his man along said man's brothers. This was his chance! Descole grabbed Elliella and shoved her into the grandfather clock before marching out into the grand hall, giving a flirty smile to Descole.

"Hello, Dessy-chan~." Anton purred as he used Japanese honorifics. "Here to ask me to be your bride?"

"A-actually, just here with my brothers to pick up their brides!" Descole said quickly. "We'll just be going now and-."

_Crash!_

Around the corner came Elliella, who had a few splinters here and there from escaping her ticking prison. When he saw her, Descole appeared in a daze (or as much as a masked man can appear to be in) before rushing to her side and shoving Anton to the floor.

"You never did give me your answer in the garden. Fully." Descole added quickly. Elliella grinned up at him and nodded enthusiastically.

"Oui, oui I do!"

"NO!" Anton shrieked as he grabbed Descole's cape. "You can't marry that French bitch!"

"Yeah! She has to try on the shoe!" Randall yelled, still smothering his face in Angela's legs.

"Forget the damn shoe, I know it's her!" Descole snapped as he brought Elliella closer to him.

"No! You're meant to be mine!" Anton wailed, before Descole kicked him square in the face.

"Screw you bitch, I'm too fabulous for you." Descole huffed and led Elliella outside along with the other princes and their brides-to-be, as Anton wailed on the floor like a three year old.

And thus, our heroine and Prince Descole got married in a triple wedding along with Randall and Angela (after Randall was pulled off of Angela's legs) and Hershel and Claire. Elliella and Descole had their honeymoon in Tahiti and after Bronev got attacked by Mary Sue's so severely that he had to give up the throne, Descole and Elliella became King and Queen, and Descole had Anton forced to wear cheap, modest clothing.

* * *

**I love your reviews, oh so much :3 Since some people seem for the idea of the one shot, I'm going to give it a shot and see what I get. Hopefully something worthwhile, because Descole does need more love on this site. From the opposite gender, and you all know it XD**


	40. The Wall of Norwell

Elaine was still wondering about the gun wound Descole had, but doubted she could have found a way to get more information. There was Raymond, sure. But he was about as likely to divulge details as Elaine's father was likely to eat squid (something he was allergic to) or her cousin, Madeline, making a good cup of tea. Instead, Elaine opted to just wait for an opportunity to find out happen. A long shot sure, but Elaine doubted she could risk sneaking into Descole's office without consequence, and finding a way into his room would be suicidal.

Admitably, a tiny part of her felt a bit guilty about being so… nosey about Descole's personal life. She hadn't forgotten what Raymond said about Descole having his share of misfortunes. Possibly ones he would prefer to keep down and hidden to himself. But after what he's put her through so far (and her family too considered they were likely still having a panic attack about her being kidnapped. Again), she felt she had some right to try and understand what exactly Descole's motives were. She could recall a phrase that went along the lines of, 'monsters are made, not born'. Surely the same could apply to Descole.

… It was thinking things like that that made Elaine consider the possibilities of her suffering from Stockholm syndrome. But she shuck it off. Of course she wasn't! She never could! She… She… She was Elaine. That should be clear as to why she couldn't be suffering from Stockholm syndrome. Shouldn't it?

It didn't matter much now she supposed. Here, in the small, town of Stransbury. There were barely any people from what Elaine had seen. It seemed worse compared to when Elaine came here during here with her classmates in college.

"I wouldn't 'ave thought this place could get anymore quieter." Elaine noted dryly as she followed after Descole through the woods in the evening time. Raymond was in the town itself to try and find some information. If Elaine hadn't been needed for translation purposes, well, Elaine still felt she wouldn't have been let to go question anyway. It was a no brainer and Descole would hardly risk losing someone who already escaped once before.

"I suppose it has been since that boy died." Descole commented, in a tone just as dry as Elaine's.

"Died?"

"Well from what I know, they never found his body. He went missing at the Akbadain ruins and hasn't been seen since."

"Akbadain? We're close to it then?" Elaine asked, trying to ignore the uncaring tone Descole used in regards in a young man's death.

"Yes. The Wall of Norwell actually gives directions towards them." Elaine stopped walking for a moment, a confused look coming to her face.

"But then, why do I need to translate anything? From the sounds of it a few people would probably know where it was if they had attempted looking for him. Couldn't Raymond 'ave just asked them?"

"I already know where the site is, but it's hardly going to do us harm to look at the wall," Descole muttered. "Besides, I want to make sure there aren't any missed details. So don't go and think you can be lazy."

"Better lazy then a pretentious, glory seeking, fame putain." Elaine muttered discretely, unheard by Descole after she began walking after him again. The wooded area was fairly dense with trees covered in moss that was who knows how old. But the walk did eventually come to its end. The Wall of Norwell was embedded in the side of a cliff and made of dark stone. The familiar Azran glyphs engraved carefully and with precision.

"The Wall of Norwell," Descole murmured, looking at the site in seeming awe. "The only thing that had brought tourists into this town before it slowly faded from the minds of everyone."

Elaine didn't speak. She was too absorbed in the wall to pay attention to anything else. She stepped forward and placed her hand on the ancient wall, brushing her thumb over several glyphs. Hiding secrets and words no one else could see, but open to people like Elaine. The Frenchwoman was briefly startled when a note book and pen was suddenly held over her shoulder. Reluctantly, Elaine took the notebook and pen and back to the wall. A tiny cringe on the verge of breaking out on her lips.

This was going to take a while.

If Elaine could have, she would have started from the bottom up. Unfortunately in this case, Azran glyphs were written and read from top left to bottom right, like most modern day writings (with obvious exceptions). So in order to make sense of the entire thing, and not end up having to rewrite it all again later, Elaine had to really squint her eyes as she looked to the very top to make sense to the glyph shapes.

Elaine mused to herself that if Descole held her up or something, it would possibly be a bit easier to do so. But she doubted he would have allowed that. He'd probably just scoff at Elaine's suggestion and tell her to go back to work.

She wasn't sure what he was doing as she was writing. Probably staying not too far away to make sure she didn't try anything like running away or calling for help. Elaine had briefly wondered if Descole ever brought something to pass the time when taking a break during his escapades. Maybe a book of some kind, or a puzzle.

It was getting darker and darker. She really didn't understand why they had to be here when it was close to dark. There was no light source now except for the moon and stars, and even then it made it difficult to make out the glyph from the rest of the rock. So she ended up have to feel the engravings as if it was braille and write it out in the notebook.

She didn't think doing nothing but write and translate would be so tiring. But she was wrong. Her wrist hadn't felt this sore since her college exams! Plus she was feeling pretty tired as well.

She stood up from the ground she had begun sitting on when she had been about three quarters of the way done. Stumbling a bit with a slight feeling of pins and needles in one legs. Ignoring it, Elaine stretched her arms out.

"About time you're done." Elaine looked behind her to see Descole leaning against a tree, looking incredibly bored.

"I 'ad trouble seeing the very top of it." Elaine replied as she went over to him to hand the notebook over which he lightly snatched away.

"Then you should have mentioned it," Descole muttered as he began flicking through the pages. "I could have lifted you up or something." Elaine clenched her jaw as her cheeks reddened a bit. But Descole took no notice. "Now let's go. Raymond found us a place to rest for the night. We'll leave tomorrow."

"Raymond was 'ere?" Elaine quickly followed after Descole when he already began walking away.

"You were too busy writing to notice." Descole said shortly. "He was here, and seeing how the only inn in town appears to have been closed for some time, we'll be spending the night in a barn." Elaine twitched a smile as Descole said it. She could see clearly that he was far from pleased about that arrangement. Not surprising given his tastes.

"You'll just 'ave to deal with it I suppose." Elaine mused.

"Don't try to get smart with me, Hawthorne."


End file.
